the price you pay
by theblueone
Summary: B/V alternate universe that takes place during those infamous three years we all know and love. When you have to choose between what you want and what you need, what price will you pay? Complete!
1. prologue

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Prologue**  
_  
Train, and when you're done with that train some more. And after that, train again._

Sweat dripped from Vegeta's over worked body as he continued to do a series of difficult katas in the pressurized gravity room. The red florescent lights that lit the room cast an eerie glow on the blue-tiled floor, accentuating the many cracks and crevices that covered it. After about eight hours in the gravity chamber and six of those hours without a meal, Vegeta's body had just about had it. Of course, that was more than he'd ever admit, but after 15 years in Freeza's service, Vegeta's body had become accustomed to enduring extreme circumstances, and Vegeta himself, accustomed to ignoring the signs of exhaustion.

The rain that had been beating down on the Capsule Corp headquarters and the gravity room hadn't eased up since the afternoon, and the lightning and thunder had become more intense as the storm neared. Storms were typical of the region, and as the large system approached, Vegeta hardly noticed when the lights in the GR turned from their normal yellow, to red as the backup generators switched on. If there was one thing Vegeta was thankful to the 'onna' for it was her practicality concerning his training and her ability to help remove the less controllable hindrances of his strenuous work load. Knowing Vegeta's training habits and how "no weather condition is a concern of the Saiya-jin no Ouji" she had had the foresight to install several backup generators to the GR so that if and when Vegeta decided to train in a storm, he wouldn't kill himself with the sudden release of 300gs or more.

"Not that I value your existence here, Vegeta," Bulma had added with obvious chagrin while installing the generators he'd 'asked' her to build.

After Goku's defeat of Freeza a few months prior and his Ascension to the level of the Legendary, Vegeta had become even more consumed with the prospect of defeating the less than skilled younger Saiya-jin. No Saiya-jin, let alone the Saiya-jin no Ouji could bear to be out powered by a lower-classed warrior. Vegeta, being who he was, made it his objective to train 24/7 in the hopes of making sure that this insult to his pride was eliminated with haste. He woke up, ate the Briefs out of house and home, trained for ten plus hours, ate whatever was left over, and then trained some more. It was a wonder to any of the members of the Briefs family that Vegeta had energy to expend on blowing up at Bulma in between his training bouts. But considering this was the only time Vegeta ever communicated with any of them, except for on rare occasions, these little outbursts of anger were quite welcome. If not to Bulma, then to her parents who needed some excitement in their lives.

But truth be told, Vegeta really had no problem with Bulma, even if he found her exasperating and irritating at times. When he had the time, Vegeta would reflect on his life with the Briefs (which was a lot better than he had originally let himself believe). They provided shelter for him and let him keep up with his grueling training schedule. Bulma was always kind to him (much to _his_ chagrin), as were her parents. Upon occasion Bulma refused to show as much respect to Vegeta as he thought fit for the Saiya-jin no Ouji, but other than that, she was painfully civil.

They all had their separate lives. Goku had his family, the Briefs had the responsibility of keeping up with their monopolizing business, and Vegeta, well, he trained and trained and trained and trained. In his mind, there was nothing more satisfying. With the shadow of the androids looming over all of them, many of the Z Senshi were consumed with the idea of becoming strong enough to defeat the foes and return to their normal lives. None wanted to face the villains the boy from the future had all too painfully warned them about. But saving the planet, for the umpteenth time, took priority.

To Bulma, it seemed like all the men in her life were slipping away, being weighed down by the pressure placed on them by the responsibility of protecting the Earth and all of its inhabitants. So it wasn't like Vegeta was the _only_ one training, he was just training for his own reasons. Reasons which just happened to include achieving the status of the Legendary and defeating Goku. But until that day, he had sworn that he would help the 'pathetic' Chikyuu-jin defeat the androids. And, despite his other flaws, Vegeta was not one to break an oath. Ever.

The clock located near the GR controls began to beep and flash, indicating that it was midnight and time to stop training. Vegeta grunted, called out to the computer to stop the alarm, and continued his katas for 15 more minutes.

After switching off the training equipment and making sure all the electronics that he had been using in the room were in order, Vegeta keyed in his password to open the vaulted door and exited the GR. Although he wasn't as worn out as he usually was after a full day of training, Vegeta was starting to feel the tingling and aching associated with soon-to-be cramping muscles. Even his tail, which was now swaying back and forth behind him in a lazy way, was sore from the exertion. He shifted his neck from side to side in an attempt to work out some of the more persistent knots, and wrapped his tail protectively around his waist. The stretching did more damage than good as the muscles in his neck stretched and cramped. He growled deep in his throat, and after the GR door closed behind him, re-entered his password before starting the journey, through the rain, back to the Briefs' home.

The night, despite the storm overhead, was beautiful and thick with the sweet, intoxicatingly cinnamon smell that most late summer nights on Chikyuu seemed to possess. The rain that beat down was laced with the smells of summer, smells that Vegeta was drawn to because they reminded him of Vegeta-sei and the lost planet that was his home. Vegeta's stomach tightened and he quickly extinguished all thoughts from his mind that called him back to a place that no longer existed and a people he would never have the privilege of ruling. Nostalgia was something Vegeta cared little for.

It wasn't very far to the dome-shaped building that was the Briefs' home, and the rain helped sooth his overheated body. His mane of unruly jet black hair somehow managed to overcome the torrential downpour and remain erect. Hell, if it could stay in place under 300gs of gravity why not through the rain? He smirked.  
_  
The substance that united all the Saiya-jins: hair gel._

He supposed that he shouldn't be laughing about that, but since there weren't any _true_ Saiya-jins left except himself, he decided it wasn't worth worrying about. If no one else could make fun of him, he would. Although the fact that he was the only non-corrupted Saiya-jin left didn't exactly settle over as well in his conscience as his hair gel joke had.

He was almost at the house and started to flare his ki to dry himself off. As much as Saiya-jins enjoyed being wet, he really didn't want to deal with Mrs. Briefs' screeching again. He'd like to be able to hear in the morning, thank you very much. Not to mention what Bulma would say or scream at him. He smirked again. Now _that_ could be interesting. Nevertheless, he decided to stay dry. He just somehow managed to avoid wiping of his feet at the door.  
_  
That'll have her going tomorrow, _he thought slyly as he looked down at the thick layer of mud tarnishing his usually immaculate white and gold boots. He thudded through the kitchen door.

Unfortunately, the mud wore out about half way to the refrigerator—unlike the through the house, up the stairs, and leading strait to the door of his quarters he had hoped for.

_Oh well, they'll know who did it._

Another dangerous smirk graced his devious face. He enjoyed getting a reaction out of her. They were few and far between, but _very_ worth while.


	2. chapter one

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter One**

The morning was young and beautiful, but as Bulma Briefs woke up, she decided she most definitely couldn't relate. It had been a week. One whole week since the last time she'd spoken with Yamcha. They'd broken up months ago, almost immediately after she returned from Namek and he was wished back, but she couldn't help but feel guilty. Guilty for making him feel guilty.

He'd come over, bright, cheery, and unmistakably showing the signs of a good lay. He was practically sweating the stench of the woman's perfume. It was too much for her to handle, just too much. She'd spent a long night at the office (not that that was anything new to her), and just couldn't deal with his god-damned smugness. It didn't matter that their relationship had been terminated, and it sure as hell didn't matter that she hadn't been able to stop thinking about his cheating ass ever since they'd broken up. He was free from her for Kami's sake, he did_ not_ have to rub it in. Which she took the liberty of informing him, publicly, and in an alarmingly high tone of voice.

Much to her disgrace, Yamcha had actually just come back from his first shoot with _Sports Illustrated_ and couldn't wait to tell Bulma about the day he'd had. He hadn't come back from seeing Suzi, or Jennifer, or Jessica, or whoever the hell she'd thought he was whoring along with. And the perfume, that was from the photo editor who was hanging all over him—a rotund middle-aged woman who couldn't seem to keep her hands off of him. All this he tried to explain to no avail.  
_  
I'm such a horrible friend._

After about five minutes of sprawling on her mattress, staring up at the ceiling, and making herself believe she was a horrible person, friend, and family member, Bulma finally managed to drag herself out of bed. Grabbing her cotton robe off of the nightstand, she made her way into her private bathroom and prepared to take a shower. There was nothing a good lather, rinse, and repeat couldn't resolve. Absolutely nothing.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Besides the fact that his training had left him more drained than usual, Vegeta was actually feeling refreshed. After falling asleep around two in the morning and waking up to do his standard warm up exercises at six, which included a ridiculous number of crunches (at least 10,000) and an equally ridiculous number of push-ups, he was left feeling uncannily relaxed. His sleep had been dreamless, not littered with images of the planets and people he'd destroyed under Freeza's command. For this small thing, he was thankful.

It was time to take a shower. A nice cold and rigid shower. He wouldn't have it any other way. Who wanted to wake up to a warm shower anyway? No one in their right mind.  
_  
The onna likes hot showers,_ he thought with a sneer. _Like I already said, no one in their right mind._

The onna wasn't up even after he'd finished his shower, leaving him with little to do in the way of entertainment. Bored, he sat at the kitchen counter and slowly drummed his fingers on its white-tiled surface, waiting, what he considered, patiently for the rest of the household to wake up. The muddy foot prints he'd left the night before were now missing. Not that he should care, right? It wasn't like the onna was the _only_ thing he found interesting on this godforsaken backwater mudball.

_Of course not._

Still, he made a mental note to destroy the house bots that controlled the cleaning to the kitchen and continued to drum his fingers.

After about 15 excruciatingly long minutes, Bulma finally decided to grace the disgruntled Saiya-jin no Ouji with her presence. She'd only had time to put on a pair of underwear, her cotton robe, and a towel to wrap her hair before tending to the Ouji's needs.

"You beckoned, _your highness,_" Bulma said sarcastically as she entered the kitchen and noticed Vegeta sitting at the table. He had stomped up the stairs about 20 minutes earlier, stood outside her bedroom door, and screamed "_Onna!"_ at the top of his lungs. Which in Vegeta tongue translated to: "Get your lazy ass down here before I blast you to oblivion."  
_  
Fucking Saiya-jins and their appetites, _thought Bulma with a fake grin as she opened the refrigerator and looked for something half-way decent to feed to a seemingly famished Vegeta.

"Watch yourself, onna. One day I may 'beckon' you to your death," said Vegeta with half-hearted malice as his eyes bore into Bulma's cotton-clad back. He recommenced strumming his fingers on the tile of the counter.

"Is that a threat or a promise?" Bulma turned on the Saiya-jin no Ouji with a strange look in her eyes. His face twitched only the slightest, then returned to the more typical calm and collected mask.

"I can promise you, without a doubt, that one day, it will be my hand and my hand alone, that will send you to the next dimension." Vegeta said it without flinching and Bulma easily returned the stare, unalarmed at his obvious bluff. Anything was worth seeing that clueless look on his face. Watching his eyes flash for a moment in confusion was priceless.

"That's nice to know," she said, turning back to the task at hand with a small smile on her face. Nothing infuriated Vegeta more than not being taken seriously or being ignored. There were ten eggs and a carton of milk on the counter along with some flour and sugar. "Eggs and pancakes sound good to you?" asked Bulma offhandedly.

"Nothing you cook sounds good, onna," he said as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Dr. Briefs' small pet cat came around the corner, attracted by the smell of breakfast, and Vegeta raised his twitching tail and wrapped it around his waist without thinking. After a small incident a few weeks prior involving the cat's claws and Vegeta's tail, the Saiya-jin no Ouji had become more cautious with his sensitive appendage around the creature.

Bulma's mind, on the other hand, was somewhere else. _Yamcha_. There was nothing she could do to reconcile with him. It was one thing accusing him of events that ended up being truthful, but it was another thing entirely accusing him of something that never happened. Especially when they were no longer in a relationship.  
_  
That's right, Bulma. You are no longer in a relationship with him. _You_ broke up with _him_ for Christ's sake!_

She could think that now, when she was rationalizing everything to herself, but in her heart, something was missing.

The sizzling that emerged from the skillet indicated that the eggs needed to me moved, lest they burn. Not that Vegeta wouldn't eat them burnt anyway. The Saiya-jin no Ouji could stomach anything, and that could be a _very_ scary thought. Frankly, she was surprised that he had any sensation left in his taste buds after all the strange things he'd eaten over the years.

Transferring three eggs worth of scrambled eggs to a plate and handing them to Vegeta, Bulma sighed. He eagerly grabbed the plate and proceeded to inhale all of its contents in about 2.1 seconds. Bulma, who was much used to the eating habits of Saiya-jins by now, still looked on in amazement. He could eat at record speed yet still somehow manage to look regal while doing it. She wondered how many years it had taken to refine that skill. Goku certainly didn't have it. And that was the understatement of the century.

About eight eggs and fifteen pancakes later, Vegeta's appetite had been sated and he looked thoroughly pleased.

"Well, now that you're full Vegeta, I think it's time for _my_ breakfast," said Bulma in an exasperated tone of voice as she turned to a cabinet and removed a box of cornflakes. A grunt was all she got in return. She wasn't _really_ worn out, but sometimes she liked to milk it around him. "You know, we could probably feed a small country with the amount of food you eat in one sitting," said Bulma in another attempt to bait Vegeta. A grunt was, again, her only response. "You speak caveman really well, Vegeta no Ouji," said Bulma after hearing his second grunt.

"Don't dishonor the Saiya-jin language," Vegeta said in a totally serious tone as Bulma began to pour herself a bowl of cereal. She looked up at his blank expression and all at once burst out laughing. Her body racked with chuckles. Vegeta didn't understand what she was laughing about. "What's wrong with you, onna? Do you get pleasure out of insulting a dead race?" Vegeta was beginning to be annoyed. Nearly immediately Bulma tried to sober up.

"I'm sorry, Vegeta. You just should have seen the look on your face," she said, still trying not to giggle. Bulma may have found Vegeta's response funny, but Vegeta, most certainly, did not. Refusing to deal with any more of Bulma's impudence, Vegeta stood to his full height, which happened to be much taller than any of the Z Senshi gave him credit for, glared angrily at Bulma, and left without a reply to her last comment.

"Fine, be a bad sport!" Bulma called after him_._  
_  
Someday, onna, someday._

He silently swore to himself as he started toward the gravity chamber for a full day of training.

Other than the small incident in the kitchen, the day had been rather eventless. Vegeta had retreated to his precious GR in order to become 'the strongest fighter in the universe', as well as melt a few training bots, and Bulma had gone off to her lab to see what she could make of the material Vegeta's Saiya-jin armor was made of—a task she'd taken upon herself since Vegeta's first battle with Goku.

'Kakkarot' had cleaned Vegeta's clock that day. The Saiya-jin no Ouji would never admit to it, but he had been out-classed, and by a lower-ranking soldier. Dignity, pride, all had been crushed that day. And as for Goku, he had no idea that in Ascending he would have one very tough warrior on his back for all eternity, or at least until he could be defeated. And if Vegeta never reached the level of the Legendary, he would never defeat Goku.

Vegeta, more than anyone, was aware of this.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji was in the GR again: blasting robots to their demise and shooting out incredibly strong ki attacks for the contraptions to reflect and send flying back at him. The only problem was that sometimes the blasts were too strong for his own good and he would get hit, rather painfully, with his own attack.

Vegeta wasn't nearly as vain as the Z Senshi assumed. He had his pride, and there was more than enough of that to go around, but he wasn't _vain_. His destiny and the destiny of his people had been one in the same, and now that they were gone, what was left for him? He had no more missions; nothing to strive for. All he had left of his heritage was to become the Legendary and with that power, defeat Goku. As empty as it sounded, it was all he knew. It was something the Z Senshi would never be able to understand. A prince without a mission had no future.  
_  
How pathetic._

Another ki blast jumped out of nowhere and hit Vegeta right in the back with a sizzling noise. He was going to be feeling that later this evening. If he caused any serious damage, he could always rely on the regen tank that the Briefs had recreated earlier from an outline he'd sketched.

The majority of his life had been spent working for an empire that took what they wanted from other worlds and then bashed them to pieces. It was amazing what one could learn by tinkering around with foreign technologies. If there was one thing Freeza had given him, it was the ability to decipher new equipment and make it work. As a result, his technical knowledge was outstanding, and, on more than one occasion, he'd been used as an advisor when it came time to purge other worlds of their indigenous technologies. Fighting may have been first and foremost in his mind, but he was intelligent enough to realize that some technologies could be used to his advantage. Such as the regen tank and the scouters Freeza had forced him to use. There may have been no more need for a scouter, but the regen tank was always useful.  
_  
Since Kami, that moron of a guardian, won't let me have a senzu._

Oh well, what didn't kill him could only make him stronger. Due to a few peculiar quarks of Saiya-jin physiology, the more damage he did, the stronger he would become. If he could bring himself close enough to death, who knew, maybe when his powers came back, strong and reinforced, he would be the Legendary. Part of him knew that it was very unlikely that that would ever happen, but if it brought him closer to achieving his goal, he would try it.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The material was amazing. It could stretch out to fit enormous proportions and then shrink back to its original, smaller size without any signs of wear on the fabric. If it could even be called fabric. It was soft and durable, but somehow tough at the same time. It appeared to be made out of a rubbery silicon material that she still, for the life of her, couldn't figure out. And of all the Saiya-jin technology that Vegeta had helped her with previously, he was just as clueless to the material components as she.

It wasn't like Bulma didn't have other things to work on, but sometimes curiosity just got the best of her, and Vegeta's armor definitely made her curious. No project had ever taken her this long before. Although she was doing the opposite of her normal, think of something that could make money and then create it, she was still vexed that this simple material left her so confused.  
_  
Oh well. I have Dad's other project to work on. This can wait until later._

That's what she'd thought two hours earlier, but somehow her mind just kept coming back to the little piece of tattered breast plate.  
_  
Let's see. Should I work on the new hover craft or Dad's communication chips?_

The communication chips were actually very interesting. For the chip to be fully effective it would have to be surgically implanted at the base of the neck and attached to a complicated system of synthetic nerves that would link directly to the brain. All known languages were to be stored in the microscopic chip. Once the chip was linked up, it would download the information it carried right into the cortex where it could sort through the material and incorporate it into the rest of the brain's functions.

The task wasn't as simple as it sounded though. The surgery itself could last up to five hours and, even then, the success rate was fairly low. About one out of every ten. Bulma was one of those successful attempts and the operation had been performed by her father. Needless to say, as a commercial product, it was still in its beginning stages.

The technology was originally designed when the Saiya-jins arrived on Earth. Dr. Briefs had thought it necessary to create a way of communication between the two races. At the time, they hadn't known that the Saiya-jins were sent to find out what had happened to Radditz. Not to mention the whereabouts of the elusive 'Kakkarot'. Then, as things came along on Namek, they all realized that it wasn't just Vegeta they had to worry about, but Freeza, the man who had sent Radditz in the first place.

But as of late, Capsule Corp was creating the chip for liaison purposes between countries that had a difficult time understanding each other. They were even hoping that the creation of the chip would lead to one world language, a Standard.  
_  
That would be the day._

Bulma smiled as she left her small lab in search of her father and the team responsible for the production of the chip.


	3. chapter two

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Two**

It was getting late. Not that Bulma wasn't used to staying at her lab into the late hours of the night, but tonight she was more exhausted than usual. It probably had something to do with the sleep she'd been deprived of the night before.

The guilt was starting to wear down on her and she knew that she better apologize. If not to let him know she wasn't mad at him, then to ease her guilt.

After deciding it was time to go, Bulma Briefs put her tools down and took off her magnifying headgear. She'd been working on the chip non-stop since two o'clock that afternoon with coffee as her only companion. Even her team had left about five hours earlier, but Bulma insisted on staying and figuring out the cause of a short in one of the circuits.

She quickly switched off the lamp sitting on the lab desk. It could wait until the next day. She'd pinpointed the cause of the malfunction, but she still needed to fix the problem. There was a simple solution, she was just too tired to implement it.

It wasn't raining as it had the night before. That was a good thing. Vegeta couldn't leave a trail of muddy footprints tonight as he had the night before. Bulma knew he'd done it just to get a reaction out of her. He delighted in provoking her.

Well, he _did _live to battle. Who cared if it was a battle of the wits? As long as he was fighting, and winning, he was happy. He would place that smug smirk on his face and raise his right eyebrow as if saying, "I'm not the one yelling, onna. _Now_ who has the self control?" Yeah, he really enjoyed seeing her get mad. He must have especially enjoyed the part that involved her yelling in his face.  
_  
That god-damned smirk._

It was his trademark facial expression. She thought that after living with him for so many months she'd be able to deal with it, but no. It _still_ got under her skin. _He_ still got under her skin. The high and mighty Vegeta no Ouji. Too proud to ever look less than in control.

_What a meaningless life._

A part of her knew that her evaluation of his personality wasn't entirely correct, but if everyone else thought that about him, why couldn't she?  
_  
Yeah, why_ can't _I?_

There was no reason, just the fact that, although she let herself believe he was less than worthy of her time, she knew she enjoyed the lonesome Saiya-jin no Ouji. Regardless of the fact that all he ever did was hurtle insults at her. There was something vacant about him, something haunting that she saw in his eyes when he thought no one else was looking. Something dead. And in the deepest part of her psyche she couldn't help but pity him.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The alarm went off again, as it did every night at midnight. It droned on and on. Fuck, would the machine ever quit? Instead of telling the computer to cease, he walked over to the console and turned off the alarm himself. His gloved fingers lightly traced over the keys that controlled the gravity intensity as he depressed the button that would return the room to normal. The planet's minuscule 1g.

Vegeta couldn't believe he'd managed to maintain his muscle-mass on this planet. He was so accustomed to the 10gs of Vegeta-sei that when he first arrived on Chikyuu he felt like he was floating. That meant he had another thing for which to be thankful. Without the use of the GR he _would_ have lost muscle mass. How could Kakkarot tolerate it? Didn't he strive for the same extreme conditions his Saiya-jin blood demanded?

_Of course not. There isn't one single Saiya-jin fiber in Kakkarot's body._

Although Goku's genetics would have proven otherwise, he was the farthest thing from a Saiya-jin that Vegeta had ever met, and he had met a lot of 'things'. In a way, Vegeta mourned the fact that Goku would never truly understand his native heritage, but he never allowed that feeling to linger for very long. It still astounded him that Goku had reached the level of the Legendary on Namek. Things were never supposed to have happened that way, or at least he hadn't wanted them to.

It wasn't raining, Vegeta noticed as he stood outside the vaulted door to the GR.  
_  
What a disappointment._

It didn't look like he would have anything to upset the onna with this time. Not that it worked last time. All he managed to get out of her was a strange death wish that momentarily left him without a witty comeback. Pushing yet another disconcerting thought aside, Vegeta remembered his diabolical plans for later that evening.  
_  
Ah, well, I_ did _promise those house bots I'd give them a little visit, didn't I?_

This would get her going, and there was nothing anyone could do to hide this one. The stupid hunks of metal were worth the price of a nice new hover car. And by nice, he meant $20,000. He was sure that if he destroyed a whole pack of them he'd get the reaction he craved. It was what he lived for.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma was abruptly woken by the sound of a loud crash coming from the kitchen. She had actually been having a good night's sleep. Which, she thought, considering the last couple of week's involvement with a certain baseball player, was rare.  
_  
Vegeta better have a good reason for this one,_ she thought with murder on the brain.

If he was doing what she thought he was doing, someone's head was going to fly, and it wasn't going to be hers.

After reaching the last stair and flipping on the light switch in the kitchen, she was greeted by one very amused-looking Saiya-jin no Ouji. He was standing in the middle of a pile of mangled metal and plastic: the remnants of the five house bots assigned to the kitchen.

"_What_ do you think you're doing?" Bulma asked in a harsh whisper. She may have been mad, but she sure as hell wasn't going to wake her mother and father up in the process.

"What does it look like I'm doing? The annoying pieces of trash got in my way, so I blasted them," he said and looked her smugly in the eyes.

"I don't care who the _hell_ you think you are. You just destroyed $100,000 worth of equipment. That doesn't just pay itself back, Vegeta. That's a shit load of money!" She placed her hands on her hips to emphasize her point. "You can't just walk in here and blast them because you're in a bad mood!"

"Can't I?" he asked, raising an eyebrow just the way she hated it, "I just did."

"How dare you? How _dare_ you?" she asked obviously livid. "I finally get a good night's sleep and I have to come down here at all hours of the night just to tell you to stop acting like a child?!" She was still whispering, but Vegeta knew she was angry.  
_  
She's still upset about her argument with that loser of a mate?_

"'Child'? You're the one throwing the temper tantrum," Vegeta pointed out.

"The great Vegeta no Ouji, forced to pick fights with a 'little onna' and house bots at one o'clock in the morning. They aren't even equipped with weapons, for Christ's sake. Some victory, Vegeta. Obviously well thought out."

"The Legendary isn't forced to fight with anyone," he responded with resentment. What was it with all Chikyuu-jin assuming that Saiya-jins couldn't think properly? "And as a matter of fact, I thought it worked exactly as planned."

"Fuck you, Vegeta!" she exclaimed.

_And damn myself for letting him get to me and falling victim to another one of his devious little schemes._

She thought before turning sharply on her heel and the marching back toward the stairs that led to her room.

Vegeta smirked. "Fine, be a bad sport!" he called after her. Using her own words against her.

"That was a good one, Vegeta! Can't even think of your own insults anymore?" she asked. She was already half-way up the stairs, waving one of her hands (and one finger in particular) in dismissal.

"Onna, you should know that I will never run out of ways to insult you," he called after her.

"Whatever, Vegeta."  
_  
A little damage to the GR might be proper punishment. I'll just remove a few wires, _Bulma thought with a smirk of her own.

She would never do it, she knew. There was nothing that would make him angrier than meddling with his training, but at that very moment it was tempting. Her fingers were just itching to take some pliers and unfasten the wires to the control console.  
_  
If he was any other man. _Anyone_ else._

He would be dead. She would have been sure to squish him like a bug, but she could already feel her anger toward him dissipating. There was something about his goading that she could never take seriously or fully to heart. It was a game to him, but a game she certainly would not let him win.  
_  
It's always been difficult to stay mad at that miserable, self-centered bastard._

No use worrying about it now. She had a meeting at seven o'clock the next morning with the president of one of their sister companies, and there was no way she was going to risk that going poorly just for the sake of the Saiya-jin no Ouji. No matter how much she would have enjoyed staying and 'chatting' with the miserable, lost monarch.


	4. chapter three

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Three**

He'd gotten her going the night before. Her eyes had that look in them that they get when she was all riled up. If looks could kill, Vegeta would have been dead a thousand times over.

_If only she had formidable ki._

She looked like she was ready to lynch him. He smirked.

_That could have been interesting._

He hadn't gotten the complete reaction he was going for, even though he said he had, but he was pleased. Every so often he deemed it necessary to put her in her place and let her know just _who_ was to be respected in the household. Everyone on the entire moronic, confounded planet needed to learn respect.

Once he defeated Kakkarot, he would be sure to give them all lessons in that area. The little onna especially.

_Now_ that _could be even more interesting._

But as amusing as this all sounded to him at the moment, the fact that he kept thinking about the pesky onna was becoming more frustrating by the day. He had more serious matters to attend to, like his training and the fact that the peak of the moon cycle, the _Khon'daia na_, was nearing.

The _Khon'daia na_ was a period when Saiya-jins were more susceptible to the pheromones and life around them. A period when their deeper and more animalistic instincts emerged. The majority of Saiya-jin children were conceived during the moon cycle. Because Saiya-jin warriors had little time for mating while purging planets and expanding the Saiya-jin Empire, the _Khon'daia na _was the only time many warriors could spend with their mates. This staggered form of reproduction was the main contributor to the low population density on Vegeta-sei.

Additionally, the _Khon'daia na _called for all Saiya-jins to return to Vegeta-sei. All communications and transportations were shut down. With all the Saiya-jins going Oozaru sporadically, even their rulers, ambassadors and dignitaries from other planets were instructed to leave. It was the most dangerous part of Saiya-jin life. It was the month when Saiya-jins were most vulnerable, and most lethal. The one month every three years during which everything stopped.

And it was nearing.

The first time Vegeta's moon had come, Freeza refused to give him leave. He'd never witnessed the strange events that Saiya-jins went through after hitting puberty. There was no way Freeza could have known what exactly was going on in Vegeta's body. But after the Saiya-jin no Ouji's first moon cycle, Freeza would never refuse to give him leave again.

The planet Vegeta had been sent to was a class triple A; the rarest and most valuable class on the market. When Vegeta returned, the planet could barely be considered sell-able. Needless to say, Freeza was furious and took out the price of the planet on the chemically-imbalanced Saiya-jin no Ouji's body. Freeza was pissed, but it could have been worse. Vegeta _could_ have been on the Ice-jin flagship when the change overtook him.

Bardock had thrown his revolt against the evil Ice-jin during his moon, when the blood of the _Khon'daia na_ had been flowing through his veins. Not exactly the most educated decision a Saiya-jin had ever made, but it certainly had made its point. Freeza had just been too uninterested to realize what _actually_ was going on down on the planet his ship was orbiting. And considering that no Saiya-jin pods were coming in or leaving Vegeta-sei, he must have been doing an excellent job of ignoring the planet's inhabitants.

Ever since then Vegeta had been condemned to stay in his quarters, which had been reconstructed to handle more serious ki blasts, during the month of his moon. The only other places Freeza ever sent him to involved suicide missions where only the awesome power Vegeta possessed during this rare time every three years was strong enough to handle the situation without Freeza's direct intervention.

The very first Legendary had destroyed himself when he reached the peak of his moon. Though that was rarely spoken of on Vegeta-sei. Not many Saiya-jins enjoyed dwelling on the negative aspects of the _Khon'daia na_. And there was plenty negative. Most Saiya-jins preferred to spend that time with their mates, or out in the forest, killing anything and everything that moved.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The engineers started working on the error in the communications chip from the second they walked through the door to the Capsule Corp labs. Bulma had come in early and told them exactly what needed to be done. After Vegeta summoned her out of bed earlier that morning she hadn't been able to fall back asleep. So after about three hours of tossing and turning, trying to force herself to sleep, she groaned, got up, and took a shower. That meant that she was in the lab _extra_ early.

So now, about six hours later, Bulma Briefs sat at her lab desk for the hundredth time that month and stared blankly at the piece of Vegeta's breast plate. After working non-stop on the communications chip for about eight hours the previous day, she thought it was about time she did something she enjoyed. And that was figuring out the Saiya-jin material.

She'd already figured out about half of the components. The problem was that the other half were alien materials. If she was going to recreate the breast plate, she was going to have to use substitutes that could be generated on Earth. That was the challenge. If Vegeta didn't know what the material was made of, maybe she could just ask him about a few of the compounds and see if he knew anything about those. It was a start.

There were light, barely noticeable purple rings under her eyes.

_One of the signs of serious sleep deprivation._

She yawned and stood from her desk. Now was a better time than any to ask Vegeta about the compounds. He'd be training the rest of the day anyway. It wasn't like five minutes was such a sacrifice.

The lights in the GR were flashing when she arrived at the training facility she'd designed for the Saiya-jin no Ouji. Bulma didn't know whether to take that as a good or a bad sign. She knew that Vegeta used ki blasts in most of his training, but wasn't sure if asking to talk to him was such a good idea. Who knew? Maybe if she distracted him, one of those ki blasts would get away and send them both to the next dimension.  
_  
That couldn't be pleasant._

She cringed. The thought of millions of volts of electricity and pure energy zapping through her body made her shiver.

_How do they do it?_

Deciding that she would wait it out and hope that Vegeta would stop using ki blasts in the next few minutes, Bulma approached the small window in the vault door to the GR.

The lights were still blinking, and Bulma could barely make out the sign on the control console that indicated the gravity pressurization.

_350gs. Vegeta must have upped his training today._

Now turning her attention to the man in question, Bulma watched as Vegeta hovered about two feet from the ground and threw ki blasts at the training bots. It was hard to believe he could do it while avoiding the ki blasts that were already flying around the room. She noticed how difficult it actually was when she saw a ki blast get shot directly at Vegeta's back. A training bot must have somehow flanked Vegeta without his noticing.

Bulma watched on, feeling she had to let him know of the danger, yet eager to merely see what would happen. The blast could kill him if he didn't get out of the way soon enough. But before the strike could hit him, he was gone. Bulma looked around in confusion. He was just there a moment ago. Seemingly appearing out of nowhere, Vegeta was back in place and bouncing the imposing ki blast back at the training bot at break neck speed. The bot never had a chance. She watched on as the melted remnants of the bot crashed to the floor, creating a small crater.  
_  
There goes another $20,000, _she thought, remembering the previous night.

Realizing that there was obviously no danger, at least not any that Vegeta couldn't handle, Bulma smiled. He really was… something. She didn't know what it took to become a Super Saiya-jin or the 'Legendary' as Vegeta preferred to call it, but Vegeta had to be getting close. Not many people could boast of avoiding one of Vegeta's ki blasts, (mainly because they were all dead), let alone in 350gs of gravity.

The only person who had managed to do that so far was Goku. And there wasn't one person acquainted with the Saiya-jin no Ouji who didn't know how much that irked Vegeta beyond belief.

He was wearing those spandex, or at least what she called spandex, shorts again. They were made out of the same material his armor was, but softer and more flexible, allowing a fuller range of movement. He looked completely at ease, concentration in his eyes. All together, even covered from head to toe in sweat, he looked _really_ good.

Bulma knew she would be lying to herself if she said she didn't find him attractive. There was nothing physically unattractive about him. He was toned from his intense training sessions, and maintained a year-round bronze to his skin. But what she especially loved about him were his eyes. She had originally thought them to be black, but upon closer inspection, she realized they were actually a rich chocolate brown. Nothing unattractive at all.  
_  
Except his personality, _she thought with a mental grunt.

Regardless of what she liked or didn't like about the Prince, she knew that he better finish soon, otherwise she was going to open that door, and one way or another, she was going to get the information out of him that she needed.


	5. chapter four

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Four**

The onna had been standing outside the door to the GR watching him train for about 20 minutes now. He thought that after the first training bot fell, she would've flipped the emergency shutdown switch and come in screaming at him. Especially after the events of the previous night. But to his extreme disappointment, nothing happened.

_I've never seen her focus her attention on anything for more than five minutes if it wasn't some scientifically up-to-date piece of technology._

It was disconcerting. But if the little onna wanted to watch, let her watch. Bur he wasn't going to stop or try anything reckless just because she was standing there. He may like to show off his talents, but he certainly wasn't foolish. The ki blasts he was using were far too strong for anything of the sort.

She was starting to look impatient, and as much as it irked him, he decided maybe it would be wise to stop for the moment. If she used the emergency switch, and he happened to not be looking, he would slam into the tiled ceiling again.

After absorbing the last ki blast and telling all the bots to cease fire, Vegeta lowered himself down to the cracked, tile floor and walked to the control console, pushing the button controlling the gravity pressure.

As soon as Bulma saw Vegeta turn the room to its usual gravity, she entered her password on the keyboard outside the GR door and entered.

"Do you actually have a good reason for coming down here, onna? Or do you just enjoy watching me get blasted?" Vegeta asked without even turning to her. He was quickly typing commands into the room's computer and appeared to be acting like he didn't have time for her.

"Yes, and yes," was Bulma's simple reply. She had to admit, watching him wield that much power was exciting. It was like the latest action thriller, and Bulma never missed one of those. He grunted. There were a few minutes of silence as Bulma tentatively watched Vegeta work his magic on the commands.

"Okay, so now that we've established that you're here for a reason, what is it?" Apparently, Bulma didn't realize that she'd been staring at him, mystified, for about five minutes. Vegeta's patience had started to wear thin.

"Oh, right. Sorry," Bulma muttered before regaining her composure. "I was working on that piece of your breast plate again—"

"I thought I already told you that I didn't know what it was made of," Vegeta stated, rudely interrupting her, and turning in her direction.

"Yes, yes, but my question was concerning some of the compounds, not the actual material." Vegeta was looking down at her with his eyebrows raised as if he had no idea what she was talking about. Seeing that she was getting nowhere with just that information, she continued. "About half of the substances aren't found here on Earth."

"Obviously!" Vegeta exclaimed as if Bulma was the most idiotic creature he'd ever met. "What did you expect? The processing and manufacturing _did_ occur on Vegeta-sei."

A slight twitch was starting to develop in Bulma's right eyebrow. If he kept interrupting her, she wasn't going to get anywhere.

"Would you stop interrupting me already? I'm trying to ask you a question here and so far I haven't been able to get out what, five words without you cutting in?"

"Then ask it already! The Saiya-jin no Ouji has little time to waste on pathetic onnas. And you'll do well to remind yourself that no one orders around the Saiya-jin no Ouji," he said, throwing his hands in the air and then nearly poking her shoulder with his index finger to emphasize his point. He was willing to exchange conversation, but not touch her in the process. Who knew what damage he could do to her frail body?

Bulma sighed deeply.

"Do you happen to know the chemical equations to any of the compounds? It would be really useful if you did." She felt much better after finally getting out what she had originally come to ask.

"I'm sure I know the majority of them," he replied begrudgingly and then turned back to the control panel.

"That's great!" Bulma exclaimed.

_Now maybe I can finally figure this thing out. _

Vegeta grunted low in his throat.

"It's taken you long enough to ask me. It's been what, two, no, three years since you started working on that armor? Really onna, how stupid can you be? It can't be that difficult to sort out." Vegeta enjoyed insulting her intelligence, even though he knew that, on a few levels, her technological knowledge greatly surpassed his own. He savored the times when she had to come to him for help.

"Well, if you're so smart Vegeta, then why haven't _you_ tried re-creating any of your battle armor?" Bulma threw back. _She_ was the one trying to do something that could possibly benefit _him_. It did help that she had an interest in it. He could say whatever he wanted about her I.Q. What it all came back to was the fact that she could beat him, or at least she thought she could, at a battle of the wits, any time, any day. It also came back to the fact that Vegeta himself was just too lazy to figure it out on his own.

"How dare you question me?" Vegeta added, now offended. "If I had need for any battle armor, I would certainly make it myself rather than have some weak onna do it for me. Wouldn't want to risk the armor being as weak as its maker."

"That's really low of you, Vegeta. I know I don't have an unfathomable power level, but that doesn't mean that everything I make or do is as worthless as you seem to think anything with a power level under a million is!" Bulma pointed out.

"Onna, I don't need, or want for that matter, to listen to your pathetic squabbling right now. I have more important matters to attend to," said Vegeta dismissively.

"What, like sticking your head farther up your ass?" Bulma mumbled in an attempt to keep her tone below that of a scream. She would let him see her mad, but she would not let him have the satisfaction of seeing her lose her control.

"Onna, you best watch your tongue before it's removed!" said Vegeta, once again turning on Bulma and approaching her. It was more a promise than a threat. This time she could see that he was truly angry. Those chocolate brown eyes she'd admired just a few minutes earlier were now black with rage.

"Oh, really?" It was the only thing she could think of at the moment. She could feel the heat and ki radiating from his body as he moved closer to her. She may not have been scared of him, but having that iron grip of a glare focused on her for a few seconds definitely made her think about bolting. Hell, she was sure it would have made anyone wish they were ten thousand miles away.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Things had ended without a bang.

_Thank Kami. The bang probably would have involved my face._

They had exchanged a few more poignant insults, but in the end, when the argument was over, both partners left feeling that they had won. Neither of them realized that it was a perfect stale mate.

Vegeta hadn't agreed to give Bulma any of the precious information stored in his brain regarding the chemical formulas, but she knew that she would find a way to pry it out of him one way or another. It wasn't like he'd disagreed.

For now, it was still early in the day. The perfect time to call and reconcile with Yamcha. She was starting to get annoyed with herself. She'd been pushing this off for far too long. Wasn't her relationship with Yamcha supposed to be one of her top priorities?

_Kami, before you know it, I'll be completely emotionally detached like Vegeta._

"Better late than never, right?" Bulma asked her father's cat as it laid on the counter, looking rather content. A meow was all she got in return. "I'll take that as a yes," she said with a smile, and picked up the portable handset to dial Yamcha's number.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The onna really had no idea how ridiculous she looked. Her hair was frizzling out of a loosely-tied bun and the glasses she wore looked like they would fall off the tip of her nose at any moment.

There she was, in all her pathetically defenseless glory, threatening him, the Saiya-jin no Ouji of all people. One simple twist and it all would have been over. A flick of his pinky finger really, and her neck would have been broken.

Before moving in with the Briefs family, Kakkarot had made it very clear to Vegeta that if anything happened to Bulma, or any of her family for that matter, Vegeta would pay the consequences. Despite Goku's usually care-free attitude, Vegeta knew not to take the threat lightly.

_Well, if I can't physically harm the onna, I can always take pleasure in emotionally scarring her._

Besides, he liked their rare interaction. Bulma was the closest thing to a Saiya-jin on Earth. She wasn't exactly his first choice person to communicate with, but after one look at Goku's cheery face and uplifting demeanor, Vegeta had decided Bulma was the better choice. It wasn't like she was completely terrible to look at anyway.


	6. chapter five

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Five**

For awhile, Bulma just sat with the handset gently nudged between her shoulder and ear, listening to the dial tone. She knew all she had to do was push one button and the speed dial would call up Yamcha's number. There was absolutely no reason for all this hesitation. It wasn't like she had assassinated one of his girlfriends. She'd merely accused him of doing some not-very-nice things. A lot of people did that. She wasn't the first person in this relationship to make a mistake.

After a few moments of mustering the courage, Bulma pushed number one on her speed dial and sat patiently, waiting for Yamcha to pick up. After about the fifth ring she was starting to think he wasn't home. Then, just as she was about to hang up, he answered.

"Sorry, babe. Just got out of the shower. I couldn't hear the phone ringing." Somehow, Yamcha always knew when she was calling. He didn't have caller ID, or at least he didn't the last time she was at his house.

"How do you do that?" asked Bulma, completely baffled.

"Do what?" asked Yamcha, equally baffled.

"Automatically know that it's me calling." Bulma sighed the last part.

"Come on, babe. I've known you for nearly a decade now, and you're still trying to figure out how I know when you're going to call?" Yamcha smiled. Bulma had no idea just how predictable she was.

"I guess you're right. You probably know more about me than I do." Bulma smiled. It was great that they could still be friends through everything. Even after he cheated on her. There were a few moments of uncomfortable silence while Bulma tried to sort out exactly what she was going to say to him.

"So the guilt finally built up, huh?" asked Yamcha, figuring he might as well get the ball rolling. Bulma always did have a difficult time admitting she was wrong.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." Her voice was deadpan.

"You know," Yamcha broke in before Bulma could had another chance to speak, "I don't blame you for what you did." Another uncomfortable silence.

"Why the hell not? I completely jumped all over you for no reason," Bulma said when she finally recovered.

"Bulma, babe, I know you'd like to say it was your fault, but it wasn't. It was mine." He paused for a moment. "My fault for cheating on you—for not being the man you wanted." He sighed.

"Yamcha—" Bulma tried to cut in and stop him from saying things he would end up regretting, but he would have none of that.

"No, I think you need to hear this." He took a deep breath and then released it slowly. "I don't want what happened the day we decided to go our separate ways to hinder our current relationship, and I sure as hell don't want you to feel guilty about something you had every right to presume. I need you to know that you will always be my number one girl. You got that? Always."

Bulma smiled sadly. "Well, I still don't think I had any right jumping all over you like I did, but if you're choosing to forget about it, then I guess I should tloo." She sighed heavily. "You have no idea how good it feels to get all of this off my chest."

"Believe you me, I definitely know how you feel, babe," Yamcha responded in an attempt to lighten up the mood.

"You were always good at getting me to smile."

"What do you mean 'were'? You're smiling right now, aren't you?" Bulma had to laugh at that one. She _was_ smiling after all.

"Thanks, for everything, Yamcha."

"No prob, babe. Man, it's cold in here!" he proclaimed, reminding Bulma that he had, in fact, just gotten out of the shower and was talking to her while wearing only a towel.

"Oh, right. Sorry. I'll talk to you later!" said Bulma, closing their conversation.

"Right on."

Silently rejoicing inside, Bulma hung up the phone.

_Well, that was surprisingly painless._

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The onna had been on the phone with her mate for about a half an hour. That was considerably shorter than usual. From the look on the onna's face and the freakish way she seemed to be glowing from the inside, he guessed that they had 'made up'.

_What's she so happy about? He cheated on her, lied to her about it, and then assume that he was still open to her bed. He didn't even have the honor to admit to his adultery._

Vegeta strolled into the kitchen. He'd been sitting in the living room, watching some karate match or something or other on the Briefs' big screen TV. Needless to say, he'd heard the whole conversation.

It was amazing to him that Chikyuu-jin could just leave all their problems behind and move on to through something called 'forgiveness'.

_If my mate even thought about dishonoring me in such away, I would have _never_ granted forgiveness._

The whole planet was warped. That was the only reasonable conclusion he could come to. On Vegeta-sei, adultery was nearly impossible. Mates were too close to one another physically and mentally for any nonsense like that to slip by.

After some consideration, Vegeta realized it wasn't like he would have totally disowned his mate, but he would have made damn well sure she knew he was displeased. For a Saiya-jin to live without his mate, circumstances had to be severe. Being separated from a mate was even considered a form of torture—especially if a bond had been created. Both partners would be linked body, mind, and soul. Vegeta contemplated the idea. No, if he had a mate, and they had been bonded, there wouldn't be any cheating. It wouldn't have been possible.

_Another area in which Chikyuu-jin are lacking._

Vegeta almost felt bad for the inhabitants of Earth. Almost.

Although being mated and/or bonded to someone else meant that there was an invisible leash, the positive usually greatly outweighed the negative. A mind link was created that, from any distance, could keep the couple in contact. Mental images, messages, and emotions could be transferred directly to the other almost instantaneously. Not to mention the sexuality of it. The mental link was a major contributor to the sensations between a mated couple. A mere touch from a partner could be considered sensuous and send shots of electricity through both of their bodies.

A bond was sacred. Though separating two mates was a preferred method of torture for many Saiya-jin enemies, no one on Vegeta-sei was ignorant enough to interfere with something so blatantly untouchable. And as for members of other species, they were knowledgeable enough to realize that if they were to tamper with that part of Saiya-jin life, it would come with serious repercussions. It was one of the most renowned interplanetary taboos.

There were some negatives, however. If a mated pair was separated by too far of a distance, they could experience nausea and shocks of pain, and their bodies could eventually go into a sort of coma if one mate were to die—possibly leading to the death of both Saiya-jins.

These considerations, above all else, were the reason why he could never take a mate. There was no way that anything, especially a woman, was going to tie him down. It was a weakness, and Vegeta had never had a fondness for weakness.

Glancing over at the woman in the kitchen, Vegeta could tell that Bulma was just bursting to tell someone about her experience with Yamcha.

_Worthless piece of shit._

Not that he really cared. It wasn't his responsibility to watch over the onna or to feel protective. Why was he thinking about this anyway?

"What was his excuse this time?" asked Vegeta in a blank tone of voice, amazed that he had even opened his mouth. He walked to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator.

Bulma, forgiving his intrusion on her privacy, smiled. "There was no excuse," she stated brightly.

"The baka actually admitted to his pornographic tendencies? Interesting, maybe he's braver than I thought," he said sarcastically. "It's about damn time." He added the last part more under his breath than to Bulma, and removed what was left of a watermelon from the enormous fruit crisper.

"You know what, Vegeta?" said Bulma, turning on Vegeta and looking him directly in the eyes. "There's nothing you could say right now that could possibly fluster me."

"Is that a challenge?" asked Vegeta, raising one eyebrow inquisitively. His tail unraveled from around his waist and swayed softly behind him.

"No, I believe that was a statement," said Bulma in return. Was he actually insensitive enough to try and bait her at such a time when she was so deliriously happy?

_Of course, he is. This _is_ Vegeta I'm talking about._


	7. chapter six

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Six**

Bulma's conversation with Yamcha may have ended painlessly, but her little scuffle in the kitchen with Vegeta, had not. As it turned out, there _were_ some things he could say to make her unhappy.

_The sadistic asshole._

The prideful Saiya-jin no Ouji had proceeded to insult Yamcha in explicit detail and then brought up some painful memories about their relationship she would have rather forgotten. It was as if he were forcing her to relive every single exasperating moment she had ever had while knowing Yamcha.

_Bastard_.

She'd been calling Vegeta that more often lately.

_And he deserves it._

Even after making up with Yamcha, Bulma couldn't help but admit to seeing some truth in Vegeta's words.

'_He left you for another woman, and then you let him crawl back to you with his tail between his legs. Really, onna. How pathetic are you?'_

The words still stung. What was worse was that he was right. She'd been a fool to let Yamcha come back to her.

_But that was then, this is now._

Was she just trying to reassure herself that she'd done the best thing? Making up with Yamcha had most certainly felt right, but the decisions she'd made before and leading up to their reconciliation had not been good ones. She sighed.

_We made up. That's all that matters now._

Vegeta had nothing to do with her relationship with Yamcha. He was a totally separate issue. It was just that Vegeta had this inhuman ability to get under her skin and make her doubt all her decisions concerning her ex-'mate,' as Vegeta preferred to call him.

What Vegeta thought couldn't possibly matter. Bulma sighed before continuing her mental tirade.

Even more infuriating was that Vegeta always seemed to have some truth behind his biting comments. Despite all her scientific brilliance, she couldn't figure out how that was possible. The part that she was overlooking, perhaps the most important part, was that because she considered Vegeta a 'totally separate issue' he was able so see things in her relationship—the flaws—that she could not.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Vegeta was finding it hard to understand what he'd said to the onna that made her so furious. Could she not see that her mate had betrayed her? Didn't she have any pride? Bulma may have had a Saiya-jin temper, but she undeniably lacked Saiya-jin disposition. She was full of contradictions.

Bulma didn't _want_ to believe that Yamcha had done all the things he had, so she made it up in her mind that he hadn't. It was pathetic, to say the least, but Vegeta couldn't blame her. Well, maybe he could.

It was one thing to cheat on your mate. It was a totally different thing to dishonor your mate in such a fashion and then come back on hands and knees begging for forgiveness.

_No honor whatsoever._

There was no reason to dwell on this. Vegeta had been thinking about the onna for far longer than he would have ever liked to admit.

_Damn the moon cycle._

Now that the _Khon'daia_ _na _was in full swing, Vegeta found himself dwelling more on the situation between the onna and her mate. That wasn't a good idea. Any attachments between himself and one of the Chikyuu-jin could be dangerous. As much as he loathed the onna, he didn't want her to fall victim to the emotional swings or the hormones that would be pumping non-stop through his body. There were far too many things that could go wrong.

He still enjoyed watching her shrivel back in fear, but that was always fear that he had purposely created. He didn't want to get into a situation where he wasn't the one controlling what his body was doing, and if she got him angry, that was exactly what would happen.

Sure, Vegeta could gruesomely damage the woman, but he'd never allow it. Not just because of Goku's threat, but also because she was the only person on the whole planet that could challenge him fearlessly and get away with it. The onna wasn't afraid of him, or if she was, she didn't let it show. Every so often he could smell fear on her, but that was becoming rare. He was even starting to believe that she had become immune to his threats.

_I've threatened her too many times without following through._

It wasn't always easy being wicked and getting away with it.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

A couple of days passed and neither one of the murderous duo crossed paths.

Whether it be intentional or just coincidence, Bulma was really enjoying her quiet time. As for the Saiya-jin no Ouji, well, he spent all his time in the GR. Even more time than before they had gotten into their little scuffle, if that was possible.

_He's so odd at times._

Not that Bulma had any way of knowing the _real _reason why Vegeta was avoiding her. Bulma was blissfully unaware that Vegeta's avoiding her stemmed from the idea that if he did confront her, and they got into an argument, he would most likely blast her. And Vegeta was sure that if they got into an argument, and he actually pondered the idea of blasting her, well, it would have already been too late.

Bulma had actually found herself warming up to the high and mighty Saiya-jin no Ouji despite herself. There was more to him than the tough guy that he let everyone else see. The hardships he'd endured while under Freeza's rule must have been overwhelming.

She and the battered prince had become rather friendly around one another. At least as friendly as one could be with an obnoxious member of royalty. Sometimes they even lasted a half-hour without arguing. When she was feeling really brave, she asked him about Vegeta-sei. Those conversations never lasted very long before would catch himself and cut her off.

Bulma sighed mentally. He was one tough cookie, but one she definitely wanted to crack.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

In the past, training was always something the Saiya-jin no Ouji depended on to get his mind off of his problems, but at the moment, it wasn't working. He'd arisen to his entire body covered in a cold sweat. His lips were nearly purple and he ached all over. Every single fiber of his being felt like it was being stretched farther than any natural thing should ever be allowed.

The first thing he'd done was take an ice-cold shower. That had soothed a few of the symptoms. His body temperature was way above normal, somewhere around 115 degrees, about seven degrees higher than the normal Saiya-jin body temperature.

He made it a point to avoid the onna. The very last thing he needed was for her to see him in this state. She was bound to ask him what was wrong, and any contact between the two of them could be disastrous. He was just going to have to find someway to avoid her. Ye gods, what was he thinking? There was no way he could honestly believe that he would be able to avoid her for the full month.

_Damn_ hormones.

If his temper didn't get her, then his hormones would.

Well, there was enough of that. He shifted his thoughts to becoming the Legendary, how good it would feel to possess that power—to hold the future of the universe in his hands.

_The power Kakkarot wields yet does not understand. _

Even if Goku overpowered him, Vegeta wasn't going to let that last for long. The Earthing had no way of knowing what it meant to Ascend. The spiritual Ascension to the level of the Legendary could only be understood by a true Saiya-jin raised on Vegeta-sei. It had to be earned, not gained by chance, or the words of a long-forgotten prophecy. At least he hoped.

It was getting late, and the Saiya-jin had gotten up earlier than normal. It was time to rest his aching, throbbing, overheated body.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma glanced at the stainless steel clock sitting on her lab desk. It was one in the morning and she still hadn't been able to break down the third compound. When Vegeta had more or less ordered a cease fire between the two of them and gone on avoiding her, she decided it was the wisest thing not to pester him about the compounds.

Her eyes felt like they were going to fall out ,and the weight of her glasses was crushing her nose. They were the same glasses her father got for her when she was a teenager. They were too big for her, but she insisted upon keeping them; claiming that the large size helped her see the full range of her peripheral vision.

It was definitely time to hit the sack. She had the next day off, so it wasn't like she had to worry about waking up early to see a client. That was a relief. It was good to know that one day out of the week she could refrain from going to work and actually indulge in the more decadent things in life—like sleep. Naturally, that sleep was only allowed for as long as Vegeta's patience lasted. His grumbling stomach had woken her up in the early hours of the morning on her day off on more than one occasion. But since they weren't talking, she supposed she wouldn't have to worry about that for once.

After making sure all the chemicals and tools she'd used were back in their proper places, Bulma left the lab and locked the thick door behind her. The night sky was very clear—much clearer than it had been in quite some time. The city lights usually overpowered the stars' faint glow. It was very pretty. Breathtakingly so.

The front door to the Briefs' residence was unlocked, just as it always was. Her mother said that she never knew when an old friend or acquaintance might pop in and she wanted to make sure they could get in easily. Bulma thought her mother was more than a little off in her logic. If friends could get in easily, then so could the people who weren't friends. People who either had intentions of stealing some of the equipment in their house or those were hired to kill her father. In his 57 years of life, her father had gotten more death threats than any man deserved.

_Vegeta would never let that happen._

It was true. She was sure that if Vegeta sensed any unfamiliar ki in the household he would get up and blasted them, no questions asked. Nevertheless, Bulma locked the door behind her as she entered.

The house was nearly pitch black, but after living in the same house for 27 years, Bulma could make her way through it blindfolded. She placed her keys on the counter and found her way up the stairs on the way to her room.

Once on the second floor, she noticed that Vegeta's door was slightly ajar, a faint glow was escaping through the crack below his door. It piercing the darkness of the hallway. Her curiosity piqued, Bulma slowly opened the door.

The window that led out to the balcony their rooms shared was open and the curtains were flapping with the gentle breeze. Whatever was glowing, it was out on the balcony. Bulma silently wondered how it was that she hadn't noticed the light before entering her home. Even though the front door was on the other side of the house, the light was quite noticeable.

After a few minutes of inching her way to the balcony, Bulma found the source of the strange light. Vegeta was hovering a few feet in the air with his legs crossed in a meditative position. His eyes were closed and a light sweat covered his entire body. He was wearing a pair of black silk pajama bottoms she'd bought him for Christmas. The material clung to his damp body and his hair was swaying with the wind. As she approached the oblivious Saiya-jin she realized with some concern that he was shivering.

_He's never done that before._

She also noticed that instead of an aura glowing around him, a bluish energy danced across his skin like flowing water. His body appeared to be the source of the strange illumination. The palms of his hands were resting on his knees facing up and flowing in each was a small aqua marine ball of ki that resembled a sphere of water. The ki balls were even more brilliant than the aura.

As she got closer, she was taken aback by his voice. Vegeta was speaking in his native tongue. The language of the Saiya-jins. The same words were flowing over and over past his lips, disappearing into the night air.

_"Rash'kin a sonat su ma. __Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan… __Rash'kin a sonat su ma. __Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan…"_

The words were guttural and vibrated deeply in his throat. Bulma could now understand where he got his strange accent from. The air was thick with the raw electricity of Vegeta's aura and the smell of his sweat permeated the air. The chanting just supplemented the mood. It was magnetic.

Standing there, Bulma couldn't help but notice some new things about Vegeta. There was something different about him, something much more masculine. Since the time he'd begun staying in her home, Bulma had tried her best not to notice anything physical about him. After some reflection, she'd eventually realized that she was afraid of what getting to know the Saiya-jin no Ouji might do to her or make her want to do. She had known men like that before. Yamcha was one of them, but it was never anything like this. It was as if looking this closely at Vegeta made every other male she had ever known unappealing.

She walked around to the front of his body, absently wondering why it was that he hadn't sensed her ki yet. That was incredibly unlike Vegeta. One of the things he prided himself on was being completely aware of his surroundings.

She stared at the spheres of energy levitating slightly above Vegeta's hands. The ki energy in them was constantly moving and flowing almost as if it were alive. She wondered what wielding that kind of power would feel like. How did it feel to hold the power to wipe out an entire planet, literally, in the palm of your hands?

Finally, after about 15 minutes of resisting, Bulma reached out and touched the orb of ki energy resting in Vegeta's left hand. Immediately, Vegeta snapped to attention. His eyes opened. They too were faintly glowing, but instead of a bluish color, they were a dusky gold.

"Onna…?"


	8. chapter seven

Insert Standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Seven**

"Onna…?"

_Shit._

The sphere of ki Vegeta had been holding was instantly absorbed into Bulma's unprepared body. She watched as the energy dispersed into her body, glowing as it crept up her arm. She took in a deep breath as the sharpness of the electricity pumped through every blood vessel in her body.

_So much for never finding out what ki energy feels like._

Bulma's heart began to race as she felt a surge of strong emotions flow into her unshielded mind. She opened her mouth and released a silent cry before beginning to shiver, and collapsing to her knees. She felt like she no longer had control over any of her limbs, and she didn't.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Vegeta could have sworn he'd locked the door to his quarters. Hadn't he done so in order to avoid the situation with which he was now faced? He couldn't remember. How could he be so reckless?

The meditation he'd been practicing was an ancient chant related to the prophecy of the Legendary. One that had been embedded in his mind since he was a child—one that no Saiya-jin _really_ knew the story behind. Somehow, the words passing over his lips had always soothed him.

What had the woman been thinking?

Ki energy was one thing, but this, this was something else. Unfortunately, the energy he'd been releasing was not the kind of energy used in battle, but something just as dangerous. The orbs were a physical means of releasing his metaphysical emotions. When he created them, all his feelings were temporarily transferred and released externally to be burned away into the night air.

After opening his eyes and seeing the Earth woman, he knew immediately what she'd done. How could he not? Their bodies were instantly merged emotionally. It was overwhelming.

Vegeta caught Bulma before she hit the hard surface of the concrete floor. His skin felt like it was burning and his viscera were on fire. It didn't help that Bulma's temperature had risen dramatically within the few seconds she was exposed to his energy. Great. It wasn't like he could just let her die, right? He grunted. Probably not. Shaking his head, Vegeta tried to figure out what to do with the unconscious woman. His tail flicked back and forth anxiously behind him.

She was lucky he hadn't fried her. The shock if it all had nearly made him lose what little control he had. When she woke up, she'd better be eternally thankful that he had self control. Because if what she just did meant what he thought it did, he _would_ have a good reason to blast her.

Uncertain of the reaction Bulma's body was having, Vegeta re-entered his room. The woman was burning up. He had to lower her temperature—humans could die of such trivial things.

_Fuck._

He glanced around the room, his mind racing. He could make an ice bath. No, too fast of a change. He didn't want to risk putting her body into a worse shock than it was already in. His eyes settled on a panel inlaid on the opposite wall, it's digital display catching his attention in the dimness of the room.

Right, each room in the Briefs' house had its own individual temperature control.

_That could work._

If Vegeta brought down the temperature in his room to somewhere between 50 and 60 degrees, it should efficiently cool the onna's body down. Or at least start the process. He walked over to his bed and placed Bulma under the covers, making sure that her neck and back were in comfortable positions. He felt her forehead with the inside of his wrist. He needed to know just how high her body temperature had become. It was somewhere in the 103 F range, but he couldn't be sure. That was still too high for a human. If it got much higher, she could die. He placed two fingers on her neck and checked the pulse in her carotid artery. It was strong, but going about 120 bpm. That was high as well.

Without further delay, he walked over to the climate control and turned the thermostat down to 55 degrees. Vegeta rolled his eyes and walked back to the bed where Bulma was thrashing back and forth. What the hell was he supposed to do now? He ran a hand briefly through his hair and decided that he felt like destroying something at that very moment.

_The onna really has no idea what she gets me into. Hell, what she's gotten herself into._

If she'd known anything about what touching that orb of ki would do, she never would have done it. Their bodies were now irrevocably linked.

_How could I be so foolish? Damn it. I'm going to need to put a better lock on that door._

The lock had been causing problems for the last couple of weeks but he hadn't found it necessary to seek the onna out and tell her to fix it. He rarely used the lock anyway.

_And now look at what my complacency has caused._

It was very easy to blame himself, very easy. He shouldn't have developed a relationship with the onna. If she'd been more frightened of him, she never would have felt comfortable wandering into his room in the middle of the night. Why would she come here anyway? He glanced at the unconscious female. What was she expecting to find or achieve by coming to his private quarters at such an hour?

This was exactly the reason why he decided to cease communication with her. Vegeta felt bile rise in the back of his throat as a sickening sense of fatalism settled over him. It didn't matter who took the blame. It was done. And even if he _had_ locked the door, who knew, maybe that would have just delayed the inevitable—especially if Bulma was becoming prone to such blatant infringements on his privacy.

A thin sheen of sweat plastered Bulma's bangs against her clammy skin, Vegeta noticed as he re-approached the bed. There was a clean washcloth in the bathroom closet, and he quickly retrieved it, soaking it in freezing water and brushing Bulma's bangs out of the way. She was still out of it.

After an hour of waiting for any sort of change, Vegeta realized he'd reached the end of his patience. This was not his responsibility and he needed rest just as much as the onna did. Bulma groaned and Vegeta stared daggers at her unmoving form, realizing he had a problem. She was still in his bed.

He _could_ move her. But what if her condition deteriorated? Well, decided Vegeta after a long moment's consideration, if they were already in deep shit, sleeping in the same bed with her certainly wasn't going to kill him. Even if the idea did intrigue and alarm him at the same time.

Removing the thick comforter from the opposite side of the bed, Vegeta slipped under the covers and faced the wall. He was exhausted.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The first thing Bulma noticed when she woke up in the middle of the night was that she was not in her room. Not that something so small was particularly alarming. She'd woken up in the living room or in her lab plenty of times. It wasn't until she realized that she couldn't move, that she started to panic.

Narrowly avoiding what surely would have been an embarrassing feminine squeal, Bulma noticed that there was something warm to the left of her. She just couldn't get her neck to move enough to get a better view. Truthfully, she didn't care who or what it was. At that moment, it was the only thing preventing her from completely flipping out.

Yamcha? Her panic started to fade.

After a few minutes, she regained movement in her arms, flexing them a bit to speed up her circulation. The person next to her shifted, and she attempted to move out of his grasp.

"Don't even think about it, onna." The voice came out almost as a purr.

_You have _got_ to be kidding me_, she thought with an instant sinking feeling. Inexplicably, her heart started pounding.

This was _not _Yamcha. She closed her eyes. Such an accent could belong to none other than Vegeta. His head must have been resting on the same pillow as hers. As if on cue, she could feel his slow intake and release of air against the back of her neck.

Fighting back panic and claustrophobia, she made to move again, but Vegeta's tail was wrapped firmly around her waist. She wasn't going anywhere.

"Um, what am I doing here?" asked Bulma, clearing her throat. She waited for the adrenaline to filter out of her system. She didn't like the way her heart had started pounding after hearing Vegeta's voice.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" he asked roughly.

She thought back to the events of earlier in the night. She was in her lab, fighting exhaustion. She headed up the stairs...

"I—I don't know." She gulped. All of this was really starting to freak her out.

The tip of Vegeta's tail was slowly massaging her side. Her back was pressed from neck to tail bone against his rock hard chest and abdominal muscles, and their legs were intertwined. She could feel every single contour in his muscled physique.

"There's no need to be alarmed, onna. In fact, you gave me quite the scare." Vegeta shifted his head closer to hers. Her hair smelled like coconut, he observed_. _

"Do you remember what happened?" asked Bulma meekly. _Someone_ had to know what was going on.

"Apparently you entered my quarters without my permission and proceeded to spy on me while I was meditating." That sounded harmless enough, thought Vegeta. It might be possible to break the link they shared if she was unaware of it.

"Yes, but how did this…?" she trailed off. She couldn't find it in herself to ask him how she ended up in his bed. And what was with this violation of her personal space? Sure, spooning was one of her favorite pastimes, but with Vegeta? Ha. The man had always seemed convinced that contact with any Earthlings would contaminate him with some strange disease.

"You don't remember anything? None of this is sounding familiar to you?" asked Vegeta. He didn't have the slightest bit of anger in his voice. Usually when he asked her questions like that, they sounded angry. His tone almost sounded soothing.

"No," she sounded helplessly. Bulma managed to turn herself enough that she could see Vegeta's face and nearly gasped when she saw that his eyes were glowing. They were a stunning shade of gold and reflected most of the light coming in from the open balcony door. "Vegeta… wha—?"


	9. chapter eight

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Eight**

The Saiya-jin Prince's eyes were glowing. He stared at her, probing her with his look. He was considering her in a way he'd never done before. Probably because showing that much interest would mean she was worth his attention, Bulma scoffed. But this look, this look said that she was _more_ than worthy.

"Vegeta… wha—?"

This kiss, if it could even be called that, was soft, very gentle, barely a brush of lips—nothing like the raw and violent lust she'd seen in his eyes. Then, just as quickly as it happened, it was over. Vegeta's face was above hers. It seemed that in those brief seconds he had somehow managed to roll on top of her, supporting his weight with his forearms. His eyes were closed, a pained expression on his face.

"So it's true then…" Vegeta trailed off.

Vegeta opened his eyes and stared down at the onna below him. On her lips, he could still sense the traces of the ki energy that had connected between them.

"What are you _doing_? Are you crazy?!" Bulma shrieked when she finally came to her senses. She had no idea what was going on.

Immediately, Vegeta removed his body from hers and sat down on his side of the bed, resting his back against the headboard. His legs were folded, his elbows resting on his knees. He lowered his head until it was cradled in his open palms.

She was positively charged. Positively charged with _his_ ki energy. And after that short kiss, he was certain he had retained all the negatively charged ki. Every last ounce of it. This was not a good thing. They had created a time bomb.

The blank look on Vegeta's face scared Bulma beyond belief. If Vegeta was at a loss for words, then something definitely had to be wrong.

_I am bonded to her. Bonded. Vegeta, you idiot, why didn't you lock the door?_

The woman sat up and stared at him, obviously wondering what mental disease was affecting his judgment.

Vegeta had never experienced anything like this before. And while on Vegeta-sei he'd never read anything about what such an exchange could do to one's body. It was the first step in a ritual meant to only be performed between Saiya-jins, _not_ scrawny and defenseless Chikyuu-jin.

What would she say? Did he even have to tell her? Blasting her was sounding better by the minute.

"Onna, I'm going to tell you something now. Something I never thought I'd have to tell anyone, something I never wanted to." He was speaking monotone, but the last part he seemed to add with a bite of bitterness. He felt sick.

Bulma widened her eyes. Sweet Jesus, what had she gotten herself into? She shook her head, trying to recall the events of the previous night. She mentally pressed the replay button, reliving the moment she pushed open Vegeta's door and walked out onto the balcony.

_I am an idiot, _she thought with a terrible realization. She'd absorbed his ki.He could have killed her for doing something so stupid. She moved to the head of the bed, situating herself the way Vegeta had, hoping he still wasn't actively contemplating homicide. She glanced at him dodgedly.

"There are some aspects of Saiya-jin life of which you may not have been informed." He paused, and looked at her angrily. "When you first met Kakkarot, he was only a child, and therefore wasn't subject to the same physical changes as my body is."

_Okay, I'll take a history lesson over being flash fried_, thought Bulma, allowing herself to relax the slightest. This was the last thing she expected, but she wasn't going to make a scene.

How to explain the _Khon'daia na_ to her was beyond him. "For one month, every three years, Vegeta-sei was shut down in preparation for something sacred, a ritual which we call the _Khon'daia_ _na_. Although 'ritual' is a crude translation. It's more like an involuntary change in Saiya-jin physiology. Classic changes involve the production of greater amounts of adrenaline, more primitive parts of the brain becoming stimulated, and subsequently greater acts of aggression."

_Okay..._

She still didn't see where this was going. But at least it was interesting and educational. She had never experienced anything like that with Goku before. Not even once. Maybe that was one of the reasons, among many, that Goku was so different from any of the other Saiya-jins she'd encountered.

"So..." started Bulma after Vegeta was fully finished explaining, "What does the _Khon'daia na_ have to do with the ki ball that I absorbed?" She struggled with the foreign words. "That was just ki energy. I should have a little power surge for the next few days, but I don't see how the two are connected."

Vegeta looked at her incredulously, she was more ignorant than he'd thought.

"They are linked by the fact that the ki ball you absorbed was not simply ki energy." He was hostile now, accusatory.

"So I absorbed—?"

"You absorbed half of the ki energy in my body, along with half of the emotions I was trying to release, harmlessly, out into the air. To prevent myself from becoming more... animalistic during the _Khon'daia na_, I meditate, concentrating my emotions into tangible spheres. So you see, you didn't _just_ absorb ki. You absorbed my positive energy." Vegeta observed her face silently, waiting for all the information to sink in. "And I retained the negative."

Bulma's facial expression changed as she put two and two together.

_Oh, no,_ she thought, the nausea returning.

"Wait, so if I have positively charged energy, and you have negatively charged energy," she said, pointing to herself and then to Vegeta, "wouldn't that mean that our energies would try to converge?" She smacked her hands together as if emphasizing her point. It was a crude summary, but it would suffice. Vegeta stared at her.

She was already attracted to Vegeta, she thought. The last thing she needed was her body to show him how she felt because of some freaky Saiya-jin voodoo.

"Yes, that's _exactly_ what it means," said Vegeta with crushing finality. "The kiss was an experiment to see if my hypothesis was indeed correct. Your lips tingled, did they not?" he asked matter-of-factly.

Bulma's lips still tingled as she touched them mutely with a shaky hand. There wasn't enough air in the room as she fought back a fit of hyperventilation.

Vegeta watched Bulma in detached amusement. _Finally_ she was as upset as he was.

She looked at him in desperation, her eyes glowing a bright silver with a tint of aqua marine—the color the ki sphere had been. The hue accented the natural color of her eyes.

She was terrified.

_Ha. And I haven't even told her the worst part._ _Poor thing._

Vegeta brushed a stray strand of Bulma's blue hair out of her eyes, then snatched his hand away quickly. Sure, the lock had been bothering him for the past couple of minutes, but the gesture was extraordinarily outside the scope of his usual behavior. He stared at his fingers as if they belonged to someone else entirely.

Without warning, Bulma reached out with her own hand and touched Vegeta's cheek. That was it. They had _both_ gone crazy.

Vegeta grunted and swatted at her hand. He didn't like where this was going. Attracting energies or not, they were still in control of themselves. They had to be. He wasn't going to let things get out of control. And certainly not because their bodies, at the moment, were chemically drawn to one another.

Maybe if he skipped to the part where they were completely damned, he could horrify them out of their bizarre behavior.

"Don't get too comfortable, onna. I still haven't told you the worst part." Vegeta hesitated. He could not remember another time in his life when he'd ever been at such a loss. Bulma turned her head slowly, she looked adequately terrified.

"You're kidding, there's _more_?"

_If you only knew._

"The exchange of ki gave you more than an 'energy boost'. Oh, no. We exchanged _life energies_." He emphasized the words, stressing their importance, then bared his teeth. "Your ignorance, one way another, initiated the first step in a Saiya-jin mating ritual." He was certain the connotation in his voice was sufficient in expressing his horror and disapproval. "_You_ just created the first bond." He pointed at her in accusation.

"_What?!_" Bulma jerked away from the Saiya-jin no Ouji that sat far too close to her. "What the hell does that even mean?" She didn't like the pointing. _He_ was the one who didn't lock his door.

"You are now permanently bonded to me emotionally, and I to you." Vegeta stared at her. She was on the verge of nuclear meltdown. He'd never seen her this upset.

"You have got to be joking." She looked at him, searching for any signs of untruthfulness, but could find none. "But we hate each other!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air.

"Apparently, not anymore." The onna seemed to like the idea of the two of them being bonded even less than he did. Weirdly, he was miffed in a peculiar way that she was so opposed to their theoretical union.

"There's no way I'm going to permanently attach myself to you because of some old Saya-jin spiritual bullshit. Sure, I'll admit to having a crush on you, but bonded? That's a stretch."

"Onna, I realize that you have no idea what's going on, and that all of this frightens you. But do you see this?" he asked drawing her attention to his eyes. "See the glow in my eyes? That's the glow of someone who has just completed the first step in bonding."

"If it's true..."

"There's no 'if' onna." He walked to his bathroom and grabbed a small mirror. "Look," he said with authority as he handed her the mirror. Bulma's eyes reflected silver on the surface of the polished metal. She tossed the mirror onto the bed, wrapping her arms around herself. This couldn't be happening. This could _not_ be happening.

"Don't you get it? This can only happen during the _Khon'daia na_. When you absorbed my ki, you changed everything." The least the woman could do was be mature about it. He hadn't even thought about blasting her, well, at least not in the past few minutes.

Bulma was horrified. She was now 'bonded' to a man who hated her. A man who cursed the ground she walked on. Oh, the irony.


	10. chapter nine

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Nine**

Vegeta decided about three seconds into his description of the _Khon'daia na_ that no matter what he did, things were bound to get worse. Bulma had had plenty of interest in the subject, but the second he had tied _her_ into the whole thing, it had completely gone down the drain.

The frightened, self-righteous onna sat about two feet away from him on his bed. That was the farthest away she could get. Their conversation was going nowhere, fast. Every time Vegeta, of all people, tried to say something encouraging, Bulma would throw back a stinging comment concerning the structure of their 'relationship'.

Vegeta raised his hand to silence her.

"Onna, this isn't easy for either of us," said Vegeta in an irritated voice. "But you you touched my energy and now we are linked. This is not something you can undo." Bulma gave Vegeta one of her infamous 'oh, yes I can' looks and Vegeta scowled. He was equally disgusted by the situation. Arguing was, therefore, difficult.

Bulma stared at Vegeta. There was really nothing she could do—absolutely nothing? She hated the idea of being powerless. She was the most powerful woman on the planet. How the hell was she supposed to deal with this? It didn't become her.

"Ok, Vegeta, since you seem to be the only one of us who understands the mess 'I' put us in. How does this work?" she asked timidly, if not begrudgingly. It wasn't like her to forfeit to Vegeta. She'd be damned if she ever admitted to it, but she just wasn't in the mood to argue with him.

_Finally, she's come to her senses._

"Bonding is highly ritualized," he began. _Probably to prevent accidents like this from happening. _"Anyway," he continued, "this whole mess has to be finalized by the end of the _Khon'daia na_. If we wait too long there can be some unfortunate side effects like paranoia, rage, or aggression. It can go the other way too. Some people feel ill and have even died. These symptoms are more likely to be elevated in your body considering how fragile Chikyuu-jin physiology is." There was no sarcasm in his voice or on his face as he mentioned her weakness.

"So then there's nothing we can do?" she asked until Vegeta shook his head 'no'.

"How much time do we have left?" At least the onna was accepting the idea that they were going to be a part of each others' lives for longer than either of them could stand.

"Three weeks, four days."

"Well, I don't know about you, but if we have that long, I'd much rather go to bed right now than worry about Saiya-jin 'mating' rituals or what not." She yawned. Maybe it would all be a sick dream when she woke up the next day.

It shouldn't have bothered him so much to hear her say the word 'mating,' but for some perverse reason, it did. Vegeta's tail began to twitch and frizzle as he dwelt on the thought.

Bulma noticed the look on the Saiya-jin no Ouji's face and wondered aloud, "They are 'mating' rituals, are they not?" She furrowed her eyebrows. "Lord knows, I don't want to get _another_ part of Saiya-jin culture wrong."

She was serious. Vegeta smirked. It was as if she didn't know what the words 'mating ritual' meant. But she had a point. There wasn't much time left until the sun would rise and, much as it pained him, he needed rest. He _did_ have training to do.

"You were correct in your assumption, onna." Vegeta loved seeing the frail creature distressed and confused, but this particular subject did not lend itself to the type of torture he preferred. Not when they were both screwed.

Bulma smiled. Maybe things wouldn't be as bad as she thought they would.

_Not that I have any choice in the matter anyway._

Bulma knew she had to leave before she fell asleep in front of Vegeta but she didn't know what the proper etiquette was. So they were bonded. What was she supposed to do? Simply leave? Give him a hug? No, that didn't seem like anything Vegeta would go for.

"Well, sleep calls," said Bulma, rising from her position on Vegeta's bed and starting toward the door. Escape sounded great.

_Don't look back. Maybe he'll just let you leave peacefully if you don't—_

But her thoughts were cut short as she felt a warm hand grab hold of her upper arm. They were both jolted by each others' energy at this slight contact.

_Just don't _look_._

Bulma squeezed her eyes shut, still facing away from the Saiya-jin no Ouji who was, apparently, holding her captive.

"Onna..." Vegeta's mouth must have been right beside her ear. "Aren't you going to say good night?" He was doing that purring thing again, he'd only done it a few times and she already hated it. Vegeta let that strange accent of his lace the loaded words as well.

"Good night, Vegeta," said Bulma, with a very obvious flinch as Vegeta placed his lips on the sensitive hollow between her shoulder and neck, gently nipping at the flesh there. What had gotten into him? Hostility and now seduction? She pictured all the five-year-old boys who used to throw sand at her during recess when she was a little girl. "It means they like you, dear," her mother had said. Yeah, right. Vegeta was no child.

Bulma could feel chills run down her spine and sensed the electricity building between them. Vegeta's free hand was now wrapped around her waist and pulling her back against his stomach. His tail slowly curled its way around her right thigh. It took all the willpower Bulma could muster not to moan.

"Is it really?" asked Vegeta while continuing his assault on Bulma's body. Bulma could still hear the purr in Vegeta's throat, it was a low vibration in his chest. Everything was going way too fast. The energy was creating a haze in the back of her eyes again and she could feel herself start to lose control. Like before, their bodies had started doing things without their conscious approval.

This was Vegeta, she reminded herself, the monkey prince who delighted in tormenting her.

"Yes."

_Dammit, make him stop, you fool!_

"Vegeta..." Bulma started to tell him to stop, but instead let out a sigh of pleasure. Before Bulma knew what was going on, Vegeta left one last tantalizing kiss on the back of her neck and stepped away from her.

"We don't want things to get carried away." Vegeta looked at her. The way he said the last two words left much to the imagination. His eyes were glowing again, and the haunted, hungry presence prowling in the background was also there.

_Where was my self control that time?_

Bulma turned and looked at him, letting out the breath she had unknowingly been holding. Her cheeks were a delicate shade of pink, her hair disheveled, and her eyes were glowing. Their twin electric currents created a magnetic pulse just strong enough to spill out through their eyes as light energy. Bulma and the Saiya-jin no Ouji's eyes, they would soon realize, would always glow when in close contact with the other.

For a few moments there, Bulma had actually decided that fate was against her, and then he was the one to stop.

She sighed.

_Figures_.

"Vegeta, what's going to happen to me?" asked Bulma, breaking the mood. She had been on one too many emotional rollercoaster rides in her life, she didn't need an experience like this putting her into more therapy.

"Nothing's going to happen to you, onna."

Bulma looked at him, pleading, begging, for what he just said to always hold true. Vegeta would never break an oath, she knew this. As long as he was there, no one would ever dare to lay a finger on her. Even before the whole bonding mess.

She nodded.

"Vegeta, I don't want you to feel you have to hold back with me anymore," said Bulma, a bit hesitantly. "No matter what happens, I do trust you." She then turned, and thankfully, walked out the door and into the dimly lit hallway.

Vegeta returned to the bed and looked down at the wet facecloth lying on the floor. What was he doing? This was _not_ his first moon.

The cloth was still damp, he noticed absently, before making his way to the bathroom to re-wet the material.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji walked out to his balcony and placed the cool cloth against his own forehead, staring at the stars. If only she'd known how easy it would have been for him to...

She was so delicate and even more defenseless while she slept. He could vividly remember the feel of her pale neck in his hand—the thoughts racing through his mind as she lay there unconscious hours earlier. One brief twist of his hand and it would have ended right there. The rituals weren't complete. He might have even survived the ordeal. He had no real attachment to her; never wanted one. But as he held her fragile form to his body and contemplated the situation, he realized he only had one choice. The self-control she saw during their discussion had only come after hours of contemplating her murder. Oh, he was angry, but only because he'd decided to accept it. And that was something she would never know.

Vegeta turned and walked back inside. The onna's room was right next door to his, maybe 30 feet down the hall due to the rather enormous size of their rooms. He could already feel the slight tug of the bond. If it was this strong with short distances, he didn't even want to know how painful it could become with greater separation. The pain would subside a bit after all the rituals were completed, but as of now, it was really just a big pain in the ass.

What was even more worrisome was that the link would strengthen as the end of the _Khon'daia na_ approached. He would be highly surprised if they were able to stay three feet apart without rolling over in intense pain as the end came near. He threw the cloth onto the floor.

_The onna better enjoy her privacy now, because it's not going to last very long._


	11. chapter ten

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Ten**

Neither of them slept well that night.

Bulma stared at the white ceiling in her room. They were bonded, _permanently_. She blinked. It wasn't just a nightmare. She turned over and looked at the Hello Kitty clock that hung on her wall.

7:03am.

And she _still_ hadn't gotten any sleep. She rolled back over, her head bouncing on the spongy material of her pillow.

What would her friends say? What would _Goku_ think?

_Not that anyone's opinion has ever mattered to Vegeta, _thought Bulma as she continued staring at the ceiling. The thing was, Goku's opinion _did_ matter to her. He was her best friend. It was no small thing that he was her—she choked on the word—_mate's_ arch enemy.

Would she ever get used to the idea? Of course she would. There was no other choice. She could choose to ignore the situation, or deal with it in a rational way.

_And I'm always rational._

She stopped herself, took a deep breath, and started her analysis.

One, Vegeta was the Saiya-jin no Ouji. He was charismatic. Never rude, but very blunt, even brutally so. Typical royal behavior. Maybe he wasn't the kindest person she knew, but there was something about him. He was a pain in the ass, but he was also more honorable than he let on.

Two, he was stunningly attractive. Exactly what one would imagine the prince of a warrior race to look like. Granted, the Saiya-jins were a naturally good-looking species, in a rugged sort of way. So she couldn't give him _that_ much credit, right?

_Rational, rational,_ Bulma reminded herself. She was allowing her distaste for him to cloud her judgment. She digressed so easily.

Okay, so maybe he _was_ a wonderful catch. When Vegeta-sei still existed he was probably considered one of the more charming bachelors of the galaxy. He just wasn't the one _she_ was looking for. She nodded her head, that sounded true enough.

Three, she, Bulma Briefs, heiress to the largest international corporation on the planet and renowned cover girl, was permanently bonded to said Saiya-jin Prince. She let the air out of her lungs through her teeth. What had her counselor told her? Right, she was the only one in control of her emotions. She could handle this. She was only trapped with him forever. Bulma sighed and pulled to pillow over her face.

Four, okay, so they were 'bonded'/married in a weird Saiya-jin way. She could choose to be tortured physically if she resisted or she could just suck it up and finalize the whole thing. Thoughts of marriage _had_ crossed Bulma's mind many times in the past several years. After all, she was nearly 30. Maybe this would be a good thing.

_Yamcha..._

She hugged the pillow tighter to her face. All thoughts about commitment and family, until about eight hours earlier, had been centered around Yamcha, not the Saiya-jin no Ouji who was living with her family. Yeah, Yamcha was a cheater and liar, but Vegeta was the last person anyone would expect her to be involved with. She may have had some lustful inclinations, but nothing that ever merited longterm commitment.

Without thinking, her mental catalog flipped open to a scene she'd rather have forgotten. It was a normal afternoon, and Vegeta had just come out of the GR, drenched in sweat. He reached into the refrigerator, and Bulma watched from the couch as the salty solution accentuated the bunching of his muscles in a curious way. He almost looked... sexy. She'd been dumbstruck. It was the first time she ever realized how attractive he was. Vegeta, noticing the attention, grinned at her as he lifted a carton of milk to his lips. She turned away, her face burning. What did Vegeta expect? He pranced around the house everyday in those little spandex shorts. They certainly left nothing to the imagination, and Bulma could imagine quite a bit.

_So much for my rational analysis._

Bulma sighed and turned over. There just had to be something on which to build their relationship other than lust. In certain situations lust would have been fine, but this was Vegeta. And this bond business seemed like it was a big deal. Saiya-jins, from what she'd gathered, rarely emoted. The way he spat the word 'bond' made it seem like it was more than mental or physical. It _was _an emotional attachment. Was she shortchanging him for thinking him incapable of something like that?

Goku had told her, with some reluctance, what happened to Vegeta right before Freeza was defeated. About the Saiya-jin no Ouji begging him not to let Freeza get away with what he had done to him—not to let Freeza do to Goku what he had done to Vegeta. He was broken; tattered and broken in a way that no man ever should be.

Remembering this, Bulma thought that maybe she'd been more than a little critical in her evaluation of the Saiya-jin no Ouji. He was a steel rod of resolve and strength, but surely if he was capable of grieving his lost morality, he was not emotionless.

She thought back to the previous night, particularly right before she left his room. He'd lost control with her. It was so rare to see something like that happen to him, regardless of the fact that he was suffering from the _Khon'daia na_. The bond did it. It was the one thing that could set him off balance and make him _feel_ things out instead of think. And the thing was, this thrilled Bulma and scared her out of her wits all at the same time.

She could still hear the words he had spoken in his native tongue.

"_Rash'kin a sonat su ma. __Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan… Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan…"_

Bulma could feel her body temperature start to rise again as she the energy within her awoke and snaked its way through her veins. Her heart pounded. Something was making her feel uneasy. There was a gentle tug at the back of her mind, something completely foreign to her.

_It has to be the link._

Suddenly, she felt nauseated.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The sky outside Vegeta's window had just begun to turn a dusky rose color. The onna had only left about an hour prior to the sun rising, and he still hadn't been able to get any sleep.

The smell of Bulma's hair was permanently imprinted on Vegeta's mind. It didn't help much that the pillow he used was the one her head had been resting on while she was unconscious. She had a very distinct scent. It had been torture to lie there with her for the hour she was unconscious, feeling their bodies tugging at each other. He was not used to taxing his self-control.

Vegeta flipped over onto his back and groaned. Things were going to be much more challenging than he wanted them to be. Everything had changed. His whole life was now altered because of a woman who was barely five feet tall. She was tiny, but her powers over him were already starting to show. It was amazing how much a bond could change a person's convictions.

It was time to train. Maybe if he did that, he could take his mind off the events of the night before. Maybe. Assuming he didn't start thinking about that pornographer the woman used to call her mate.

_Used to call._

Jesus, he was thinking about it already. Why did he even care? Everything was unexpected and unwanted. He was mated to the Earth woman, they were linked, but he didn't have to think about it all the bloody time.

Together forever. Until death. Shit. This wasn't working.

Vegeta grunted, sat up from his position on the bed, and walked to the bathroom.

_A cold shower sounds really good right now._

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma hoped that her headache would be gone by the time the sun was fully risen. But after cursing the blinding light creeping between her blackout curtains for an hour, she decided it wasn't going to get any better. She got up in search of Ibuprofen and an icepack. This day was going to be _awesome_, she could already tell.

Fighting back an unexpected bout of dizziness, Bulma headed to the bathroom. Her face was flushed, and after letting her curiosity get the better of her, she retrieved a thermometer and took her temperature. It was a stifling 102 F. Much higher than it ought to be.

_That's odd._

She pondered the idea of being sick or catching a bug for a few moments. It couldn't help that she'd experienced such a physically, mentally, and emotionally draining situation the night before. Her immune system was probably overwhelmed. She might hate having Vegeta's energy pulsing through her veins, but right now she certainly wouldn't have minded having his white blood cells. The man could survive anything. She'd never once seen him ill.

She looked at her face in the mirror as the fog from the shower slowly obstructed her view. She hated being weak. But what she hated even more was that her soon-to-be 'mate' disliked the idea of her being weak as well. And now she was sick.

_Like I need another problem to deal with._

The sound of the water running through the pipes in the room next to her let Bulma know she wasn't the only one awake. The walls between their two bathrooms were thin, and she could hear the shower in Vegeta's bathroom as it pelted droplets against the ceramic of the tub.

Bulma stepped into her own shower and stood under the hot water for about two seconds before realizing it had to go. She turned the knob all the way to the right, sighing as the freezing water soothed her aching muscles. When was the last time she'd enjoyed a cold shower? Not since the eight grade, she thought, when she'd burned herself to a crispy lobster red multiple times in pursuit of 'the perfect tan'. She examined a brown freckle on her arm suspiciously. She was _so _going to get skin cancer.

Bulma turned off the shower and tossed a robe around her bare shoulders. Her increased body temperature and the inferno that seemed to be consuming her stomach were subdued after the frigid shower, but still present.

_Damn stomach bug._

This couldn't be a good thing. What was going to happen between her and Vegeta, if she was too sick to even look at him? She smirked. She highly doubted she could ever be _that_ sick. Anyway, whatever it was, it hadn't started to bring her down yet, and if she could help it, it wasn't going to either.

After eating a nutritious breakfast and turning on the TV, Bulma plopped down on the sofa. It was her day off dammit, and she was going to relax.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Once dressed, Vegeta made his way down the stairs to the kitchen. The onna was downstairs as well, he noticed before touching his foot to the floor. His mind was blaring, rather painfully, that she was near. He twitched. Onna radar. Excellent.

Her temperature was still elevated. That was strange. He was almost certain that it should have returned to normal after her body became adjusted to the new power within it. Maybe he was wrong.

The lights in the kitchen were off and the onna was sitting, actually, more like lying, on the couch. There was an icepack on her forehead and her arm was over her face. Apparently she was trying to shade her eyes from the nonexistent light. Vegeta flipped the switch to the lights and Bulma groaned.

"Vegeta, would you mind terribly if I asked you to keep the lights off?" she asked from under her arm. Her eyes were still closed. "I have a wicked headache and I know you can see fine in the dark."

Vegeta grunted, but complied. Something was amiss.

After raiding the refrigerator of all the edible contents, and some of the inedible, Vegeta approached the spot where Bulma lay, in her misery, on the sofa. It seemed she had actually fallen asleep.

_She must have gotten about as much sleep as I did._

So the effects of their bond were equally strong in both of them; the physiology didn't seem to matter. That was intriguing.

_Maybe things will work out better than she thought—better than I thought._

Another one of the defiant locks of hair had made its way into Bulma's closed eyes. Vegeta moved his hand under Bulma's arm, and brushed the lock out of the way. Bulma sighed in content and lowered her arms. She actually looked peaceful when she slept.

It was strange, thinking back on their non-existent relationship. Vegeta had hated the onna when he first met her and learned to loath her even more as he stayed with her infuriating family. She had a short temper, arguably just as short as his. And she was one of the most stubborn creatures he'd ever met.

_She's practically a Saiya-jin._

But there was a huge disparity between her personality and her ki level. Still, depressingly low ki or not, she had every warrior on this planet wrapped around her finger. What she didn't have in ki, she made up in wits.

And she was quite beautiful. Exquisite even. Her exotic coloring was magnificent. He'd noticed it the second he laid eyes on her, but it had always been from an aesthetic point of view. This was different. He supposed in many ways they were the perfect match. Assuming that he was even looking for a match, which, he reminded himself, he wasn't.

If the onna had known what would happen, she never would have entered his room, never would have walked out onto the balcony, and certainly never would have touched the ki sphere. He knew enough about her to understand that this wasn't what she needed, and certainly not what she wanted. Even if she had an underlying attraction to him, this wouldn't have been her wish. He was too jaded, too cold to deserve or desire the affections of another.

It was becoming difficult to remember what it was like to be sought after. Before it all, before Freeza, he had been someone. He had been important. The one destined to be the Legendary. What more could any female want? He smirked. Then again, Chikyuu-jin did pick strange mates. They were usually completely unsuited for each other. Case in point, Bulma and Yamcha.

He turned yet again and gazed down at her form. The bond was tugging away, even as she slept. His eyebrows furrowed. It wasn't something that could be ignored for long.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma found it disturbing that she could only fall asleep while Vegeta was in the room. It was as if her body finally told her it was safe to shut down. She wasn't going to argue. Sleep was a precious commodity. After watching TV for about five minutes, and eating breakfast, she'd actually started feeling worse. Whatever. Vegeta was just going to have to deal with it.

She was having the strangest dream. Vegeta was standing over her, dressed in his royal armor, as if about to leave for battle. Her mind told her to let him go, but her heart would just not allow it.

Vegeta reached his hand out to her and brushed a stray lock of hair out of her eyes. She sighed blissfully. Her eyes searched his, begging him not to leave. Vegeta looked at her sternly, then turned his back and left.

"Vegeta..." It was the last thing she whispered before he was out of sight.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The Saiya-jin no Ouji had nearly left the room when he realized Bulma was dreaming.

"Vegeta..." She was reaching out to him telepathically.

It was the last thing she muttered before turning over and burying her face in the sofa cushions. A few moments later she turned back over, and Vegeta noticed, with some dismay, that her cheeks were covered with a thin sheen of tears.

Things were becoming more confusing by the moment. He re-approached her sleeping body.

Vegeta sat down on the sofa next to her and slowly wiped away the tears with his thumb, examining their silver hue. Bulma seemed to relaxs. The tear fizzled and disappeared on his finger.

"Onna, what have you done to me?" whispered the Saiya-jin no Ouji before lightly brushing his lips over hers.


	12. chapter eleven

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Eleven**

Bulma opened her eyes to Vegeta's face and nearly wet her pants when she realized how close he was. What was with all this kissing? She let the thought go.

She'd had such a horrible dream.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The kiss had been just a slight brush of lips. Vegeta didn't want to startle her. He knew that even in her sleep she would be able to feel it. The energy would be very hard to ignore. Impossibly so.

She stirred and opened her eyes.

Several emotions crossed through the onna's eyes after the initial look of confusion. Almost as if she still thought she was in the dream. There was a part of her, a part that to the untrained eye would have gone unnoticed, that looked horrified. Had he really rattled her that much? Was she so disgusted?

Vegeta pulled back. If he was not wanted, then he certainly wasn't going to expose himself to more rejection, regardless of the fact that she was basically his mate. Kissing her had been a careless move anyway. He didn't want to slip the way he had the night before.

He continued to look into her eyes. To his amazement, she looked even more confused after his sudden movement. Her eyes were glowing, and he could feel the static building between them. Perhaps going back to the sofa hadn't been such a good idea after all.

But just as he was about to make an exit, the oddest thing happened. The onna lifted her arms up and spread them out wide in an inviting fashion. Was she offering herself to him? Vegeta raised his eyebrows. He wasn't sure about most of the Chikyuu-jin customs and didn't want to over compensate. He needed to train anyway.

Bulma furrowed her eyebrows. She looked at him, almost pleadingly. A few moments passed while the Saiya-jin decided how to decipher the situation. For some reason, the onna looked like she was more prone to believe that _he_ was rejecting _her_.

_The hell with it. It's now or never._

Without another thought, Vegeta lowered himself over Bulma and into her open arms, crushing his lips to hers. Bulma wrapped her arms tightly around Vegeta's neck. There were a few seconds when Bulma was unresponsive, and Vegeta wondered if he had done the wrong thing. But by the time that thought even crossed his mind she'd already started responding.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Even after Bulma opened her arms to Vegeta, she still had no idea why she had done it. He'd had a frightened look on his face for the briefest second.

_Maybe I was wrong…_

Then, just as she was about to put her arms back down, he was upon her. His hungry lips devouring hers. She was shocked. After his blank look she had been sure he was turning her down.

_Okay, so maybe I wasn't wrong._

He continued to kiss her, and she responded with a gentle nip on his lower lip. She could hear a low vibration in his chest and smiled mentally.

_He must have really liked that._

With some amusement, she realized she liked this more animalistic side of him. All she knew was that whatever he was doing to her felt good. He was gentle with her, but there was an edge to it that barely hinted at concealed danger.

Vegeta's tail wound its way around her thigh, pulling Bulma's body closer to his.

_Correction, it felt damn good._

Vegeta was teasing her with his tongue, running it back and forth along her own in an erotic fashion. Bulma couldn't help but groan from deep in the back of her throat. He was only wearing a pair of those black spandex shorts and Bulma savored the feeling of his warm smooth skin against her fingertips.

She felt like she was burning up from the inside. The energy residing in her body pressed her against Vegeta nearly painfully. Nearly. She enjoyed lingering over the thought that being close to Vegeta's body could never be truly painful. It wasn't like she'd never wondered how amazing it would feel to be pressed against his body before anyway.

Vegeta trailed his way down Bulma's throat to the hollow between her neck and shoulder and gently nipped there. He seemed to have quite a bit of interest in that part of her body.

Kami, he smelled good. Delicious even. Salty like blood and rich like chocolate. It was funny, he seemed to taste exactly the way he smelled. He was wreaking havoc on her senses. She was freakishly aware of everything he did to her. It didn't help that he was lying on top of her with his mouth harassing her neck and his hands working their magic all over the rest of her body.

Much as it shocked her, she could definitely get used to this.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Somewhere in the back of Vegeta's mind, he wondered what he was doing. God, he wanted her. But why? Was this all just some strange side-effect of the _Khon'daia na_ and their energies being shared?

Bulma had been acting strangely since earlier that morning when he walked into the kitchen. He made a mental checklist. The light hurt her eyes. And didn't she cringe when he slammed the door to the refrigerator? He knew she could hear him up the hall and coming down the stairs. Her senses were acute for those of a Chikyuu-jin. Perhaps too acute.

_Could she be experiencing the _Khon'daiana_?_

It was improbable, but not impossible. A transfer of energy with the magnitude of the one they had experienced could, in theory, trigger such a reaction. After all, the _Khon'daia na_ was just a simple chemical imbalance that occurred in the brain, right? That's what all the Saiya-jin scientists had claimed it was.

Add the energy factor in with the melding of both their bodies' emotions and the bond that had formed instantaneously, it was a recipe for biological disaster. True bonds could only be formed while both partners were going through the _Khon'daia na_. He knew that the Chikyuu-jin never went through anything even closely resembling the Saiya-jin moon cycle.

But here they were.

The onna usually acted completely rational, thinking everything through before actually doing it, but this, this was much less than rational. She was letting her body get the best of her. He had never seen her do that—not even with her weak, playboy ex-mate. How could she just give herself to him? She wouldn't.

_Ah, where's an elder when you need one? _he thought in irritation. It was really starting to bother him that he knew so little about the mating customs of the Saiya-jin race. Not that any of the elders would have dared to write about a mixed species bond. Before the fall of Vegeta-sei, such an occurrence would have been a disgrace. Under some extreme circumstances punishment was even issued to those who became too attached to a member of a separate species. The Saiya-jin race had to remain pure.

Vegeta mentally cringed.

_And here I am, the Saiya-jin no Ouji, taking an alien mate._

Not that he had a problem with breaking the rules. No, he'd been doing that for far too long to even begin to care about something so minutely important.

Most of these thoughts lingered in the back of his mind as he continued to kiss Bulma. She felt unnaturally good beneath him, warm and soft. Everything he wasn't. He shook the thought from his head. It had been too long since he'd taken the time to indulge in the pleasures a woman had to offer.

Bulma groaned again, but instead it came out as a deep, seductively low, growl.

Vegeta halted his ministrations momentarily and Bulma made a slight whimpering noise as if she was actually hurt by the sudden breaking of the pull their energies had created.

_She most likely _is_ in pain._

Things were beginning to get carried away again. But damn it all, this time he really didn't want to stop. But what if she regretted it? That would be one hit to his pride he could never take. And what if _he_ regretted it? Hell, he regretted it now.

"Onna…" Vegeta trailed off as Bulma arched her neck and pressed her lips to the Saiya-jin no Ouji's.

_This has to stop now._

"Yes?" breathed Bulma in response.

"This can't happen, not now at least. You're not thinking clearly," he said, trying to pull away again. Bulma stopped for a moment and looked up into Vegeta's face.

"I'm thinking more clearly now than I believe I ever have in my entire life," she said in a whisper.

There was a time and a place for this sort of thing, and that time was not now. Vegeta slowly brought his face down and gently nipped at Bulma's neck.

"I know, little onna, I know," he spoke into her ear. He could smell the desire on her, and he was sure she could smell it on him as well. Had Vegeta been any other man, he was sure the temptation would have been too great. But this wasn't like either of them. And certain rituals had to be performed before anything physical could happen.

Bulma groaned, and Vegeta pulled away.

He sat up and moved to the side of the sofa opposite Bulma. This was crazy. When he realized one of his hands was shaking, he quickly crossed his arms.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

There was a cold shiver running down Bulma's spine that wouldn't go away. The want she felt was consuming.

"I wasn't lying, you know," said Bulma, glancing up at Vegeta and trying her best not to fidget.

"I know," replied Vegeta turning to look down at her. "But you must understand that a lot more is going on in our bodies than you are aware of. We cannot allow things to get out of control before the proper rituals have been performed."

"You mean that this," she said referring to what had happened moments ago between them, "can be dangerous?"

"Yes."


	13. chapter twelve

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Twelve**

"Yes," said Vegeta answering Bulma's question. "The truth is that the melding of our energies, in an uncontrolled manner, could possibly lead to great destruction."

Bulma's eyes were wide.

"What kind of destruction?" Vegeta was one of the most powerful fighters in the universe, nothing was too big for him. She learned that the hard way.

"I'm not sure exactly, but this planet would definitely be on the list. Keep in mind, onna, that you contain half of my power. My body is strong, but could still implode with all the pressure created from the melding of power levels spiking up to a quarter million."

"Oh." She was speechless. Who knew it was that strong?

They both looked at opposite sides of the room.

"It's probably just the energy, but for some reason, pretending I'm not drawn to you now is like pretending that gravity doesn't exist. Futile." Her words broke the awkward silence. She wasn't used to being this open with him either, but she felt that due to the current situation, it was necessary for her to be up front with him at all times.

"I have felt it as well."

"Is it normal?" she asked.

"As far as I know. I have never been bonded before. I can't tell you from experience," stated Vegeta. "This," he said motioning to the both of them, "bonding," he added, "is a once in a lifetime thing. I can only describe to you what I have read or what the elders have told me." He seemed cold again, emotionless, she hadn't seen that in him since the morning before, and for some reason, it seemed like an eternity ago.

Bulma sat up and leaned back into the sofa with a sigh.

"Vegeta, I need to tell you something, and feel it's very important," said Bulma, staring out into space. Vegeta just nodded his head in response. She needed to get this out before he totally retreated back into himself. She grunted. "I imagine the first thing you probably wondered was why you didn't lock the door to your room. You must regret it every moment you look at me," Bulma whispered to herself. Vegeta looked up. Bulma stopped and lowered her head slightly. There was silence, thick penetrating silence.

"Onna—"

"But I want you to know, I don't regret it," she said, cutting him off, still looking down.

"Bul—"

"This isn't what I had planned either."

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

So she didn't regret it. Vegeta had to admit he was a little irritated that she kept cutting him off. He even went as far as to call her by her name.

But he was intrigued.

Bulma got up to leave. Vegeta's lack of comment had caused her enough embarrassment. If he didn't care, then she didn't care. All his unresponsiveness seemed to do was confirm her suspicions.

"Onna," called Vegeta from his position on the sofa. Bulma stopped and turned, struck by a sense of déjà vu from the night before. Vegeta tried to measure her. "We aren't done here." Vegeta gave her a 'come hither' look (whether by accident or not) and Bulma reluctantly reseated herself on the sofa, as far away from the Saiya-jin no Ouji as the small piece of furniture would allow.

"Well, are we going to discuss? Or are you going to sit there in silence forever?" asked Bulma. Vegeta's eyes flashed as he looked up to glare at the woman sitting beside him.

"Don't presume to order me around, onna. I'm just as confused as you are. I've never had to explain myself to anyone before," he said begrudgingly. Bulma sighed. Why was he always so difficult?

"Fine," she said flatly.

"I will not, cannot lie to you, onna. Many of the things you said held true to my initial reaction, but I am telling you, that in this situation, at least for now, there is no forcing either of us to do anything." Vegeta paused. "We still are not completely bonded to one another, understand? I think it's clear by now that there was a, however disturbing, attraction between the both of us before."

Bulma's face reddened.

"But—"

"I could kill you for what you've done. I wanted to. But you haven't ruined anything yet."

_Yet. You've just completely altered everything I've ever known._

It was the 'yet' that filled him with the most lingering sense of horror at the whole situation.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

He was attracted to her, well, of course he was now, and quite literally, but he said he was before this whole mess. As far as she'd known, he hated her. But now that she thought about it, just because he was attracted to her didn't mean that he couldn't resent her at the same time. Most of the time, she hated his guts too.

Bulma scooted over, nearer to Vegeta, and tentatively rested her head on his shoulder. She was shocked when he didn't immediately shrug her off. It wasn't the most comfortable position, considering his arms were still folded, but she decided she liked being close to him.

"Thank you."

Vegeta simply nodded his head.

Bulma wrapped her arm around Vegeta's exposed stomach and took in a deep breath. If she was going to try this thing out, she had to start with baby steps. Vegeta stiffened a little. Bulma closed her eyes and focused on falling asleep. He was just going to have to learn.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The onna scooted next to him and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you." He knew she was thanking him for telling her how he felt, but he couldn't help but sense a deeper meaning to the words.

He knew he should be training, and he told himself that he would get up as soon as the onna fell asleep.

Bulma wrapped her arm around Vegeta's stomach and snuggled herself up to his side even tighter. Her fingers were cold against his overheated flesh and he fought back a hiss as they trailed across his unprotected skin. It was strange that despite her fingers' temperature they still left a hot trail over his abdominal muscles. He hoped she'd fall asleep soon.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma awoke to find herself back in Vegeta's room. She was covered by his thick gray comforter and black sheets. The pillow she was using smelled like him, she noticed as she took in another deep breath.

The whole room was saturated with his scent, and she began to realize why he'd brought her here and not to her own bed chamber. Last night had proven that neither of them would be able to sleep anywhere that didn't remind them of the other.

She sighed, rolled over, grabbed the nearest pillow, and put it over her head like she had that morning.

How was she supposed to explain this to her parents? She knew they'd always fancied the idea of her and Vegeta possibly getting together, but this was way outside the scope of normal courtship. Her mother was going to flip, Bulma thought with a mocking smile. The woman loved a good intrigue.

Goku had even mentioned something to her, and he wasn't exactly the most intelligent person by nature. How was it that everyone else seemed to see the chemistry between her and the brutish Saiya-jin no Ouji except she and the prince?

_ Friends do have a way of seeing the things in your life that you would rather leave unnoticed._

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Hopefully she would sleep better in his quarters. After all, she was going to have to sleep there from now on. Vegeta, himself could go without much sleep for weeks, but there was a breaking point, and the woman, well, the signs of exhaustion had started to show up after only one night without sleep.

If they were sharing the same quarters and things continued to progress between them the way they currently were, the rituals were going to have to be performed immediately. There was too great of a risk in waiting.

_Some time later this week or in the next few days._

Maybe even the next day.

Vegeta tried to re-focus on his training and upped the gravity another 50 gs. All the energy stored during the _Khon'daia na_ had to get out somewhere, and training had always been his best vent.

_I must rise to the level of the Legendary._

Vegeta began another series of katas and began to feel the power building inside of him. It was intoxicating. He was so close. If he could only push himself a little further.

_The onna must be waking by now._

His thoughts drifted to her sleeping form as the image of her lying in his bed flooded his mind.

Something alien in him stirred. It pushed against his mental walls with a life of its own.

There was a sudden burst of energy and Vegeta flung his head back and screamed. It was as if something had clicked inside of him. The power was building quickly—just the way he imagined it would.

His eyes flashed blue and his hair gold.

_I did it. I am the Legendary._

At once, he collapsed to the floor of the GR in pain. The blue of his eyes slowly returned to its usual dusky, goldish brown and his hair, black. The lights above him were red and blinking on and off.

_So close…_


	14. chapter thirteen

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirteen**

Bulma could feel the energy surge all the way from Vegeta's room. Usually she couldn't sense anything ki related, but ever since her energy had been combined with Vegeta's, she had an uncanny way of sensing him.

Immediately, she jumped out of the bed that she'd been lying in for Kami knows how long, and ran down the hall. She launched herself down the stairs and opened the door that exited the kitchen. Once out on the lawn, Bulma looked frantically around to find any indication that the GR had been destroyed, yet again. There was nothing.

Nearly in a panic, Bulma ran around to the other side of the house where the GR was located. The lights were red and blinking on the inside. How many of the generators could he have knocked out? What in the seven hells had he been doing? Didn't he know that releasing that much energy could be dangerous not only to him, but all the people within a few miles of the GR? There he'd been, lecturing her about energy releases earlier that morning, and now he was the one being careless.

_Vegeta, what have you done?_

The windows were all fogged up and cracked in several different places. Bulma had no idea what was going on, she couldn't see the Saiya-jin Prince.

She approached the vault door and took a look at the control panel. It indicated that the pressure had returned to its usual 1g. Bulma sighed in relief. If the GR had been charged up to Vegeta's usual few hundred gs, there would have been no way she could get in and help him without risking further injury. Everything seemed to check out on the outside, now she needed to figure out what was going on within.

Bulma quickly typed in her password and override command to open the door.

The first thing she noticed was how dark the room seemed. The lights had stopped their insistent blinking and totally shut down right before she reached the large training facility. She couldn't see any movement, that also wasn't a good sign. Vegeta was usually moving around at speeds close to that of light in here. An uneasy feeling settled in Bulma's stomach.

"Vegeta…?" It was a soft call. She wasn't sure what to do.

Bulma walked toward the control panel that resided in the center of the room. She needed to know what had gone wrong. She squinted her eyes as the screen blinked to life. The GR's computer recorded everything that went on in the room from temperature to ki levels. She quickly accessed the main memory.

Apparently everything had been going on as usual until about five minutes prior when the computer registered a ki level that spiked up to about one and a half million. Then a few seconds later the energy had dissipated down to somewhere around 10,000. Whatever happened, it had left Vegeta drained. His usual power level was at least three times more that. Something had gone terribly wrong.

Bulma walked around to the other side of the console.

_I really should have grabbed a flashlight, _thought Bulma as she wandered blindly through the dark. Her sense of sight had been heightened since the energy exchange, but it still wasn't anywhere near that of a Saiya-jin's.

There was a sudden movement and shuffling noise from somewhere in the dark.

"Vegeta?" asked Bulma, hoping beyond hope that he wasn't too badly injured.

A faint silhouette was beginning to form out of the darkness, albeit moving slowly.

_He must have really done something to himself._

"O-onna…"

"Are you all right?" she asked timidly, reaching her hands out to support him, even as the help was batted away.

"Did you feel it?" asked Vegeta as he walked toward the control panel himself.

"Of course I did." _Why else would I be here, you moron?_ She had been scared out of her wits when she realized what was going on. He could have been killed. He could have _died_, and she wouldn't have been able to do anything to save him. _You_ _nearly scared me to death_.

"I was the Legendary," said the Saiya-jin no Ouji wistfully as he accessed the same memory files Bulma had moments earlier. If her hearing hadn't been so sharp, she probably wouldn't have heard him. It seemed he wanted to know what had happened just as much as she had. He turned and looked up at her. Although it was still difficult to see in the dark, Bulma suspected she would have had to be blind not to notice the golden glow that shone brightly in Vegeta's eyes.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Vegeta found it quite amusing, despite his current state, that Bulma chose a time like this to show her emotions. Her face gave away nothing, but her eyes, which were glowing with the same intensity as his, gave everything away.

It was odd that the onna hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary about her heightened senses. She had most likely brushed them off as a reaction to the his energy. Simply a positive side effect perhaps. Soon she would realize what was actually going on as the other, not so positive, effects of the _Khon'daia na_ hit her.

Vegeta turned away from Bulma. He had lost his self-control only moments ago, and even if it had helped him gain the status of the Legendary temporarily, he was still dangerous. With all that power flowing through his veins, if only for a few brief seconds, Vegeta felt more liberated than he had ever felt in his life.

The computer beeped and Vegeta looked down to where the stored memory was scrolling across the screen. The ki reading was amazing. One and a half million. The strongest Vegeta could ever remember himself being was immediately after his battle with Kakkarot, the moment he stepped out of the regen tank. His power level must have been somewhere around 15,000. But then again, that had been before he was killed by Freeza. Now, when completely powered up, his power level was somewhere in the 30,000 range. The giant leap to over a million was overwhelming.

_I'm so close, I can taste it, _thought Vegeta as he stared blankly at the power reading displayed on the screen.

Bulma shifted anxiously from foot to foot.

"How did it feel?" Bulma asked Vegeta once she summoned up the courage.

There was an uncomfortable silence. How did it feel? It felt amazing. It felt like he could do anything. Something had stirred inside of him as he became the master of everything he'd ever wanted. He was completely in control of his own destiny. He was free.

"Like nothing I've ever felt before." It was a low and gruff response, thickly laced with unseen emotion. The uncharacteristic Saiya-jin accent leaked its way into his words. It was something that he seldom allowed because it meant his control was slipping. Vegeta realized too late just how much he let slide.

He looked up and Bulma smiled at him. It was the smile he hated—the one that told him he was becoming more like the soft Chikyuu-jin that inhabited the planet.

There was another long, uncomfortable silence. Ascending to the level of the Legendary, if only for a few seconds, left him feeling more drained than going through an Oozaru transformation. Vegeta replaced the biting comment at the tip of his tongue with an angry glare that clearly said 'back off'.

Bulma hastily made her way in the direction of the exit.

Vegeta had no idea what she was making such a fuss about. He was fine. The GR was fine. She couldn't be upset just because he brushed her off. He had done that thousands of times before. What made this time any different?

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

If Vegeta wanted to get himself killed, that was just fine with her.

No, in fact, it wasn't fine with her. That was the problem. Every time she tried to stop him from doing something damaging to himself, he pretended it didn't matter.

Bulma was shocked when she found out about his transformation. She knew he was capable of it, but she wasn't sure she liked the means he used to get there. Pushing himself to a point where he was about to pass out from the exertion wasn't the most enlightened of ideas. If he did it that way, he was going to accidentally commit suicide.

She took a deep breath through her nose and released the air slowly through her mouth. Whatever. She wasn't his keeper.

And, she had to admit, she was ecstatic for him—almost overcome by a sense of pride.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Vegeta watched as Bulma stomped away, her head high, and her pride, if a little shaken, still intact. He hadn't meant for her to take his gesture so personally, but the reaction suited him. He didn't want her here.

He flipped a switch on the control panel he was still standing by. The GR immediately came back to life. The power surge must have just temporarily shut down all of the electrical equipment. The computer was the only system that could never be shut down. It was fueled by an impregnable nuclear power cell.

That was another thing for which he was thankful. The damned computer had saved his ass on more than one occasion. One way or another, the onna was looking out for him.

_Always back to the onna, _thought Vegeta in slight irritation and shook his head. He would have to face her later that night. He couldn't blame her for being curious, but the key to becoming the Legendary permanently was right at the tips of his fingers. If he could only figure out what it was…


	15. chapter fourteen

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Fourteen**

Vegeta continued his training for another six hours. She hoped he'd come and talk to her before midnight, but she wasn't holding her breath.

He was still remarkably aloof. But then again, had she actually expected things to be any different? No, she hadn't. It was obvious to her that Vegeta had no intention of becoming emotionally attached. She had never liked clingy guys, but Vegeta was a little too withdrawn.

Strange, the mysteriousness that cloaked him had always been one of her major turn-ons. And, she concluded rather shamefully, it still was.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

As was routine, Vegeta stopped his training when the alarm went off at midnight. The onna hadn't noticed, but she slept nearly the whole day away. The _Khon'daia na_ must have hit her harder than he originally thought. She would get used to it eventually. There were so many things she was going to have to get used to.

He sighed. She was probably still angry with him. And this time, he had to pretend to care. He hated that about her. She always made him think things over twice. He didn't like questioning himself. Before he came to stay with the Briefs, he never questioned himself.

Vegeta's eyebrow twitched in agitation.

His training session hadn't gone as well as he hoped. He couldn't locate the trigger that had caused him to Ascend.

_Not one bloody trace._

It was irritating how his mind kept straying. And it worried him. It was a weakness. Freeza hadn't tolerated weakness, and neither did he. To admit to weakness was admitting imperfection and that too, was something Vegeta would never do.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma knew that she and Vegeta were going to have to talk sooner or later, so rather than waste another couple of hours, she went down to the lab and worked on some research.

Dr. Briefs was at the lab when Bulma came in and asked her how she was doing. She said she was fine and went on with her business. She glanced at him warily.

He'd been acting strange lately. In the past months, she'd more than once seen Vegeta leaving the research compound late in the evening. Her father was the only other person with an access code that worked after hours so she couldn't imagine what would have drawn the Saiya-jin no Ouji to the facility at such a time. She didn't dwell on it. It probably had something to do with the GR.

_At least I'm not the only one he's pushy with, _thought Bulma as she rolled her eyes.

She glanced back at her father as he hurriedly flipped through some paperwork. Apparently he was working on a new project that was going to revolutionize modern technology. She wasn't sure what he was talking about, but given the excitement with which he approached every project, she wasn't overly concerned.

Dr. Briefs sat quietly at his desk, obviously waiting for her to start some sort of a conversation. In an attempt to appease him, she gave her father a huge grin and made a comment about how happy she was to be working in the lab again. Her father didn't need to know what was going on between his daughter and the Saiya-jin no Ouji. At least not at the moment. And she wasn't exactly sure she wanted to know how he would react to the news.

_Most likely he'd be deliriously happy, s_he thought. Her mother would be in love with the idea, but then again, her mother was in love with anything and everything that seemed even slightly romantic. She had to hand it to her mother though. Mrs. Briefs may have come off as a ditz, but she was extraordinarily intelligent behind the scenes. She'd added her own ideas on more than one of Bulma's projects, and they were usually very good ideas at that. She enjoyed the finer things in life, but wasn't afraid to wander into the lab upon occasion. Bulma just liked to work.

_And I wonder why I have personal problems._

As much as she loved Yamcha, she knew that if worse came to worse, her work would always be there for her. Fights would come and go, but her work—that was her one true love. Some would call it empty. She just called it realistic.

_But Vegeta..._

No, there was just something different about Vegeta, something she knew she wanted, and Bulma always got what she wanted. She grinned.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji was probably one of the biggest challenges she'd ever undertaken in her life. She'd spent months getting Vegeta to simply tolerate her presence. Not to mention developing a verbal report that sometimes bordered on civil. But she liked when they argued. She enjoyed the competition and knowing that she was competing with someone to whom she could possibly lose. It made winning so much more fun.

_Dammit, why can't I stay mad at him? _Bulma thought with some resentment as she noticed where her train of thought was leading her. _Well, I always wanted to be with a prince when I was a child._

Of course, the murderous, dark, monkey of a prince hadn't exactly been what she had in mind. And now that was exactly what she was stuck with. Perhaps 'stuck' was too harsh of a word. He wasn't the prince she had envisioned at that younger, more naive stage in her life, but at that very moment, remembering their interlude in the living room, he had all the makings of becoming her personal erotic prince charming.

And boy, _did_ he.

She had to stop thinking about this. She needed to keep a cool facade. Not another one of those bizarre fogs of lust that seemed to come over her like a tidal wave. Kami, she could have smacked herself. Her body was rebelling against her.

_Traitor._

Strange things had been going on the whole day. She seemed hot and fuzzy, energized. Like she was seeing everything through a haze, but with minute detail. It was the oddest experience.

Her lab, which she usually kept around 75 F, had to be dropped down to 60 just so the room wouldn't feel stuffy. She needed a glass of water about every five minutes, and her staff had taken the brunt of her temper more than once. She felt wired and exhausted at the same time. If that was possible. She really needed to hit the sack.

_Must be that stupid bug._

Bulma was suddenly overcome by a shivering spell as she slid under the blanket in Vegeta's room. She'd come to his room nearly an hour prior to shower and just relax before slipping off to sleep. And as much as she didn't want to admit it, she was also there, waiting, still in the hopes that he would show up early and talk to her.

Bulma laid back into the pillows that lined Vegeta's headboard. They were black, matching the sheets and the gray comforter. Bulma sighed as Vegeta's fragrance filled her nostrils.

It was funny really. She knew men that would kill to get their hands on a cologne that smelled like Vegeta's pillows did. The amusing part was that Vegeta didn't wear cologne, and he sure didn't need to. He smelled good naturally.

The room was freezing.

Bulma turned and looked at the climate control box. It was set at 55 degrees. Had it been that cold the last time she was in the room? She couldn't remember. Strange how she was just comfortable at 60, but freezing at 55. The blankets were starting to warm up anyway.

The clock under the temperature display read 11:54pm.

_Any minute now._

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Vegeta walked into the Briefs' home and quietly shut the door behind him. He had no need to wake up the whole household, and he certainly wasn't in the mood for an argument.

_Something that's been happening far too often._

The tired Saiya-jin no Ouji started his way up the stairs. He could sense the onna's ki coming from his room.

_Good, she actually wanted to get some sleep tonight._

He wouldn't apologize. It wasn't his fault. Vegeta grimaced. Now he was even rationalizing to himself. This was exactly why he hadn't wanted to take a mate in the first place.


	16. chapter fifteen

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Fifteen**

Vegeta entered his quarters and shut the door behind him. Bulma lay on his bed in a deep sleep, faintly murmuring to herself. He found himself amused as he watched her thrashing about.

He really needed a shower.

It only took Vegeta about five minutes to lather up and totally wash off his body. One of the advantages of being one of the strongest fighters in the universe: he could wash nearly as fast as he could throw punches.

Vegeta wrapped a dark green towel around his waist and walked out into his quarters. He needed something to sleep in. Typically he slept nude, but he didn't want to scare the onna any more than he already had.

He searched around for the pajama bottoms was wearing the night before, but when he couldn't find them, settled for a pair of navy blue cotton boxers. With his modesty mission complete, he hung his towel from the bathroom door knob and made his way towards the bed.

The room did seem a bit stuffy, he concluded and opened up the doors to the balcony. The sky was exceptionally clear. Clouds had been hovering in the sky for the past few days. While he didn't mind it so much during the day, it bothered him at night, feeling separated from the rest of the universe.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji turned back to the sleeping onna momentarily. She had stopped moving a few minutes after he walked through the door. His mere presence must have been soothing to her.Vegeta turned back and walked out onto the balcony through the open doors.

There was a slight breeze and he could feel his hair gently sway with the wind. The air was cooler than he expected and Vegeta shivered as the air hit his damp body. Wrapping his tail around his waist, he leaned forward onto the metal railing.

It was useless, he knew, to search for the star that belonged to Vegeta-sei's system. Freeza hadn't only destroyed Vegeta-sei, he'd destroyed the whole system. Star and all. Vegeta stopped as he reached a bare spot in the sparkling sky. A vacancy. Freeza had wanted Vegeta to feel as detached as possible. And he was _very_ thorough. It was amazing how small one could feel while looking up at the expanse of space. How insignificant. How _lonely_.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The last thing Bulma could remember before falling asleep was how cold it was.

She was having another nightmare. Vegeta was dressed in his battle armor as she watched him leave. It was under slightly different circumstances than the last dream, but just as vivid.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji, somehow turned King, looked at her with an unspoken emotion in his eyes—a grief she'd thought the steeled warrior incapable of? Sadness, but not her own.

_How odd._

The sadness appeared to be coming from him. From _Vegeta_.

"Vegeta…" She reached out to him, but he'd already turned. He was determined not to let her see his weakness.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

There it was again.

"Vegeta…"

What was going on? What was triggering all these outbursts? She wasn't supposed to be able to communicate telepathically. Chikyuu-jin were astoundingly devoid of any such capabilities. She would be able to communicate with him mentally _after_ they were fully bonded, but not before. And that was still a long shot.

He was intrigued and at the same time deeply disturbed. The bond they shared must have been more powerful than he first imagined. Great.

At least she could only communicate with him mentally while she was sleeping. Between bonded Saiya-jins, strong emotions could sometimes spill over into the other mate. But given Chickyuu-jin physiology...

The onna was laying on his bed just as he had left her, but the peaceful look that had shown up on her face when he entered the room the first time was now gone.

He _knew_ she was sad. Something deep within him reverberated with the memory of her mental plea. What was she dreaming about?

He couldn't believe how quickly she'd become emotionally attached to him. He didn't understand it. Were all Chikyuu-jin so quick to form emotional attachments? He'd never experienced another species with the same vulnerable behavior. The emotions she'd absorbed tied them both together, that was certainly true, but that didn't explain this.

Vegeta sat down next to Bulma on the bed. Her facial expression worsened.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji took his hand and placed it about three inches above Bulma's face, letting it hover there for a few moments. He slowly moved his hand up and down, but he couldn't read her. Mind reading wasn't going to work this time. Whatever had allowed her to reach out to him before was now closed.

After a few moments of further mental probing, Vegeta realized the futility of his endeavors. She was not Saiya-jin. He could not comprehend her mind the way he could members' of his own race. She was human, alien, something he was never meant to understand.

Vegeta let his hand travel the small gap between his palm and her cheek and rested his calloused fingers against Bulma's skin. The woman was cold.

Her eyes opened immediately. Physical contact always seemed to be the catalyst in their current relationship.

To his surprise, her eyes were clear blue and glowing.

Bulma stared up at the Saiya-jin no Ouji inquisitively for a few moments. She wasn't prepared to see him so near.

The onna reached out her hand and timidly touched his face. He fought back the urge to pull away. He didn't like casual intimacy.

_Her hands are cold as well._

She looked shaken. _Again._ Could this just be some strange reaction to the _Khon'daia na_?

"You're still here?" asked Bulma with a little quiver to her voice.

"I am." Vegeta didn't know how to reply to her question. He opted for the obvious.

"But I thought…" She trailed off and touched his face with her other hand. It was equally cold. "You had to leave."

Vegeta had no idea what she was talking about. He wasn't sure whether to be concerned or annoyed. And this, if anything, vexed him even more.

"I'm here now. I haven't left you." Again, he stated the obvious.

Bulma's facial expression crumbled. Vegeta didn't know what he said to get that sort of a reaction out of her. He still had difficulty deciphering Chickyuu-jin expressions and their triggers.

Not knowing quite what to do, Vegeta reached out and touched her cheek again. Bulma looked up and stared at his face, studying his features. Without warning, the tiny creature wrapped her arms around Vegeta's neck and pulled him against her frighteningly cold body. Vegeta, accustomed to unexpected movement in battle, was taken aback by her curiously firm grip, but allowed her to keep holding onto him. Chickyuu-jin touching rituals were also something he would never understand.

The onna was crying silently onto his shoulder. Vegeta had seen her cry twice in the last day, and he believed that was more than he _ever_ wanted to see her cry. He would do anything to keep her from crying. His stomach clenched uncontrollably.

"Thank you." Vegeta didn't know what she was thanking him for, but he nodded his head in response. Bulma released him uncertainly from her iron-strong grip and sniffled. It was amazing to him how her emotions could change so quickly.

Vegeta glanced out the open balcony doors and up at the night sky.

_Vegeta-sei…_

The woman shuddered. Could she feel his pain? Was that it? Vegeta got up and walked back out onto the balcony. He had to escape.

_She can feel my pain…_

That must have been it then. His emotions were spilling over and into her. He had put mental blocks up, but it seemed that little pieces of him were seeping into Bulma. He was going to need to put up stronger shields. An unconscious heart-to-heart was not on his to do list.

The metal railing was cold against Vegeta's over-heated flesh, but he failed to notice as he pondered all the new information.

He could sense Bulma moving behind him, and wasn't surprised when she wrapped her arms around his side and pulled herself close to him.

"Don't ever leave me." It wasn't a request, more like a command, but Vegeta knew what he would have said had it been a question anyway.

"You know I can't," he replied blankly.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma sighed. He should know by now that he couldn't hide _everything_ from her. He wouldn't leave her, at least not the real-life Vegeta that was standing next to her.

No, she was safe. Even if he wanted her to think that the only thing keeping him with her was the bond they shared. There were feelings rooted deeper somewhere in there. She just had to find them.

"I don't blame you for acting the way you did earlier today, Vegeta," she said truthfully. After revisiting what had happened, she realized that he just must have wanted to be alone. Before the formation of the bond, she might have found out anyway if he'd decided to gloat about it, but other than that, their communication was typically at a minimum. She had no right to be offended by his cavalier attitude.

"Maybe you should," he said it flatly, maybe even a little bit sarcastically, but Bulma was still shocked to hear the words pass over his lips.

_Is he admitting that he's wrong?_

That was the closest thing to an apology as she was _ever _going to get out of him.

It was silent and cold. Bulma shivered. Whether it be from the cold weather, or being so near to Vegeta, she didn't know. There was a lot of body heat coming from him, but the opposite side of her body wasn't touching his warmth.

Vegeta's tail unwound itself and wrapped around Bulma's waist. She was sure he could feel her shivering and even hear the occasional chatter of teeth.

He was looking up at the stars, searching. After a few moments, she looked up herself and followed the direction of Vegeta's eyes. Not knowing what to look for, Bulma paused and glanced up at Vegeta's face. He was thinking, possibly calculating the coordinates of some unknown celestial location.

The place he belonged.

_His home?_


	17. chapter sixteen

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Sixteen**

Bulma wasn't slow. She had to know what he was looking for.

The onna squeezed him a little bit tighter. She'd been staring at him for the past few minutes thoughtfully—trying to figure out what it was that had kept his attention for so long. Apparently, she'd figured it out.

Vegeta didn't like pity, and as he was discovering, he _especially_ didn't like it from his mate. Part of him knew that she didn't _pity_ him, but the emotion was similar enough that he considered it the same. Perhaps there were too many things that he didn't know. He didn't appreciate the feeling.

Bulma sighed heavily and rested her head on Vegeta's shoulder. It was cold outside, but the onna didn't seem to mind.

_Ah, the human form of 'comfort'._

That was something he also wasn't used to. Comfort made you weak, vulnerable. Vulnerability had never been an option.

Vegeta stopped searching for his lost star. It wasn't there. There was no use in reaching for things that didn't exist.

_No use at all._

The onna yawned. It was getting late. Maybe not so late by his standards, but late by _hers_. She snuggled in closer to his side, successfully getting Vegeta to remove his arm from the railing and place it around her. It was unlike him.

The words of the elders echoed through his mind yet again. How he hated that. It was a constant reminder of weakness. Bonds weren't supposed to happen, well, at least not to him.

There was another yawn. It was time for bed. Rest would certainly be a welcome release after the night before. His body seriously needed to be shut down.

Vegeta glanced down at Bulma. She looked comfortable, as if she could fall asleep right there in his arms.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma tried her best not to yawn, but it seemed her desire for sleep was getting the best of her.

When Vegeta casually wrapped his arm around her, she didn't know how to react.

Vegeta snapped out of his reverie and looked down at her. It seemed to be the first time he acknowledged her presence in the last half hour or so. Bulma considered it a welcome change.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The woman opened her eyes when she noticed he was watching her. She glanced up at him sleepily.

Vegeta lowered his head down to her ear and whispered hoarsely, "I think it's time for bed, don't you?"

It wasn't meant to come out the way it had, but it had certainly gotten the onna's attention. What was meant to come out as a statement of exhaustion came out as a rather suggestive growl.

Vegeta felt her stiffen. It was remarkably easy to turn her on. He had to stifle a laugh as she snapped her head to attention at his innocent words.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji let a short chuckle slide. Bulma backed up and punched the amused Prince in the shoulder. He didn't even flinch, but he _did _plaster an arrogant smirk on his face. After a few minutes, Bulma started grinning herself.

"I hate when you do that," said Bulma, trying to recover from her temporary lapse in will power.

"Hate what?" asked Vegeta as he started toward the open doors to his room.

Bulma let out a very Saiya-jin like growl and stomped into the room behind him. She was such a baby when she didn't get exactly what she wanted, and Vegeta knew what she wanted.

_Toying with her is only half the fun._

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma realized that Vegeta was baiting her only a few moments after she stomped into the room.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji walked to the temperature control panel on the opposite wall, adjusting the air conditioning. He was wearing a simple pair of boxers, a human article of clothing he'd never given a second glance before. She smiled internally. The man was becoming more human than he was aware.

Bulma laid on the bed and got under the covers. The cool material felt good against her skin. There was nothing she could do to push down the excitement that was growing in her stomach.

_God, I'm behaving like a giddy fourteen-year-old._

Vegeta laid down next to her and stared up at the ceiling for a few moments. Neither of them knew what to do. The Saiya-jin rolled onto his side and called out to the computer to turn the lights out. He was facing away from her. It appeared the night would go by eventless. He had his side of the bed and she had hers.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The first thing Vegeta did after turning over was decide that he didn't like the position he was in. Cursing the hormones he was struggling to control, he rolled over and wrapped his free arm around Bulma, pulling her right up against his stomach. Bulma gasped and struggled, the momentarily settled for compliance. She shivered involuntarily. There was no way she was still cold. Vegeta chuckled.

Bulma continued to squirm, not sure what to make of the situation. Vegeta was sure it had something to do with the suggestive comment he'd made earlier, but he didn't care. She was his now, dammit, and she would stay where she was.

Deciding this was a game she was going to lose, Bulma let out a sigh and snuggled in closer to her Saiya-jin captor. It wasn't like she really wanted to get away. Who was she kidding?

Vegeta tried not to dwell on how Bulma's body felt pressed up against his own. Part of him was even regretting that he couldn't fulfill the deeds he'd hinted at earlier. If anything good came of this, it would be finally taking her and getting this hormonal nonsense out of his system. He could deal with the more upsetting parts of bonding once he stopped thinking about how it would feel to... But he had to wait, even if the rest of his body disagreed. And, ye gods, did it disagree.

_Tomorrow. The rituals_ must _be performed tomorrow._

It would be a miracle if they even lasted that long, especially if things continued to progress the way they had been.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma awoke the next morning to find herself in a tangle of limbs. It seemed that somehow she'd managed to turn herself around in the middle of the night. She was half on top of Vegeta and his arms were around her. His tail was loosely coiled around her right calf and their legs were intertwined.

She was covered in a light sweat and her head ached. Panic struck her with a jolt when she tried to remember the events of the previous evening and found herself drawing blank. The cotton of her pajamas, however, reminded her that things hadn't gotten too out of hand.

_That __was_way_ too close, _she thought to herself. She didn't trust herself around Vegeta anymore. Correction, she didn't trust her _body_ around Vegeta anymore. There were too many things it liked to try to do without her consent.

The room was cold. It had to be in the lower 50s and she _still_ felt like she was going to die of heatstroke. It didn't help that the Saiya-jin no Ouji seemed to be on fire.

She'd dreamed again. It was odd. Before, she thought that they only occurred when Vegeta was out of the room and away from her, but not now. How was it possible that she could have such a nightmare when he was laying right there beside her?

She'd run to him. _Begged_ him not to go. Wrapped her arms around him and cried until she could cry no more. But he still left. He pushed her away and left. It was duty, it was his choice, and it was destiny.

Bulma looked at the clock next to her bed. It was ten o'clock in the morning.

_Vegeta's not going to be too happy when he realizes how much of his day he's wasted when he could have been training, _thought Bulma with a cringe.

Bulma pushed up on the bed and tried to get up without moving the sleeping Saiya-jin no Ouji.

"You do know that I can sense you in my sleep, onna, don't you?" asked Vegeta as he cracked one eye open. He grabbed her and pulled her back down. Knowing that she was no match for his inhuman strength, Bulma complied without a fight and took her place right back on Vegeta's chest. His skin felt smooth. She wondered what it would feel like to have her own bare skin up against his and his arms around her.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Vegeta could smell the onna's arousal. Perhaps pulling her back down wasn't the best idea. He knew what Bulma wanted.

Vegeta began to slowly run his fingers up and down Bulma's lower back. After the onna's initial reaction of shivers passed, she relaxed on top of him and started breathing more evenly.

_That's right. Rest, little onna. You're going to need all of your strength._

"Vegeta," asked Bulma after a few moments had passed, "can't you feel it?"

He wasn't quite sure what she meant. He felt _something_. The dreams she'd been having worried him. And there was something else. He just wasn't sure what it was. What was he missing?

"I can feel it." He trailed off. What was he supposed to say?

"Then why can't you stop it?" she whispered. It was a rhetorical question, he knew, so he didn't reply.


	18. chapter seventeen

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Seventeen**

The poor onna was exhausted. If Vegeta had even had the slightest idea what was bothering her, he would have done something, _anything._ He couldn't tolerate her when she was like this.

Could her dreams just be a result of the _Khon'daia na_? Subconsciously, he _was_ pushing her away. It was his natural reaction. It was the only thing he had left with which to protect himself. Separation. It was inevitable that both of them become attached, but Vegeta _had_ always been one to challenge destiny.

He couldn't make her dreams stop because he couldn't make himself stop. That was the most likely solution, right? He couldn't get himself out of his head. The bond wasn't something he'd accepted willingly.

She was still lying on his stomach. It wasn't like Bulma to rest in place of work. She was a workaholic. She'd live in her lab if it were possible. Really, it was a wonder she had ever maintained a relationship with that womanizing ex-mate of hers.

He should have killed that incompetent moron while he had the chance. Oh, the things he would do to Yamcha if he had the chance. No one, _no one_ dishonored the Saiya-jin no Ouji's mate. Even if everything had happened _before_ they were mates.

It was getting late out. The clock that once read ten now read five. While Bulma had collapsed into a peaceful, dreamless sleep, Vegeta had been brooding about how to tell her about the _Khon'daia na_, and that the rituals were going to be performed much earlier than she expected.

He needed to wake her before dusk. If he didn't, then they'd have to wait until the next day, and he didn't think they would be able to make it that long. He didn't think _he'd_ be able to make it that long.

Vegeta inhaled deeply, taking in the fresh coconut fragrance of Bulma's hair, and then moved to wake her.

She awoke with a sigh.

"Vegeta, what time is it?" asked Bulma from her perch on his upper body. Her eyes were still closed. .

"It's after five."

"After five?" She yawned. "In the morning?"

Didn't she remember that the last time she checked the clock it was ten?

"Five in the evening," he said flatly. "Now, you really must get up. There are _issues_ we need to discuss."

When Bulma didn't move Vegeta made a motion as if he were threatening to get up.

"Okay, okay, I'm up," said Bulma in a defeated tone of voice. "You know Vegeta, you make a really good pillow." Vegeta didn't know whether to be flattered or insulted, so he remained silent. There was no need for him to get into an argument with her.

Bulma unceremoniously rolled off Vegeta and onto the other side of the bed.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

He hadn't slept at all, not in all the seven hours that she had been lying there. Something was definitely up.

Bulma yawned and stretched her hands out over her head and arched her back. She felt rested yet tired at the same time. It was the strangest feeling.

Vegeta was the first one to get up off the bed and walk to the bathroom.

"I'm going to take a shower, onna," said Vegeta as he reached into the linen closet and retrieved two towels. He turned to directly address her. "You need to take one as well."

Bulma immediately blushed a deep shade of red. Why was he so good at implying these things?

_Bulma, girl. Get your mind out of the gutter!_

But who wouldn't have their mind in the gutter? There was the Saiya-jin no Ouji, standing before her in a pair of black cotton boxers, _shirtless, _and holding out a towel to her. His facial expression was blank. He looked at her questioningly. It appeared that this time he actually didn't know what he said to get such a reaction out of her.

"Onna, time is limited," said Vegeta as he handed the towel out to her again. Their hands brushed briefly and jolts of electricity were sent through both of their bodies. Vegeta was the first one to pull his hand back.

Vegeta stepped back into the bathroom.

"Oh, and, onna..." Bulma looked up at him. "I _did_ mean separate showers." Vegeta smirked and then closed the door to the bathroom.

Bulma blushed an even deeper red before exiting Vegeta's quarters to go to her own room and take a shower. _Alone._

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

His shower was cold, as cold as the knob controlling the water temperature would allow. After his last physical contact with Bulma, he was left more than a little excited. He'd needed to get out of there before Bulma ended up in the shower with him. The temptation was too great.

Bulma left to take a shower in her own quarters not long after Vegeta had gotten in the shower himself. It was a shame really. They were both showering at the same time, but not together. Vegeta chuckled to himself. There would be a time for that. Later.

He turned off the water and searched for his black body suit. Such rituals required a bit more formal attire.

The water shut off in the room next to his. The onna was out of the shower and would be coming back shortly. Then he was going to have to tell her everything. It was going to be a _very_ long evening.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji pulled his breast plate over his head and secured it in place. It was his most decorative one. The crest of Vegeta-sei was embroidered into the fabric in a deep red color and outlined in gold. The material this particular breast plate was made of was the most durable and strong. At least ten times stronger than the standard material the breast plates for lower-ranking Saiya-jin were made of.

_If the onna really wanted to make herself useful, she'd make me a replica of one of these, _thought Vegeta absently. No, he was letting his mind wander again. He needed to keep his attention on the situation at hand.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma had no idea what to wear. She knew that it was just Vegeta and whatever she was wearing, or _not_ wearing, would be just fine, but something seemed different. Special.

Her hot shower had relieved most of her stress, but she could still feel that prick on the back of her neck. Vegeta was worried about something.

Bulma grabbed her chapstick and lightly applied some to her lips. Kami only knew what all the cold air she'd been exposed to was doing to her skin.

After applying a suitable coat of gloss, Bulma knelt and opened the bottom left-hand drawer in her dresser. There were only a select few things in this drawer—things that were important to her. She reached for a lump of black clothing all the way on the bottom and removed it.

Years ago, when Bulma had first started working on making a replica of Vegeta's battle armor, she made a replica body suit. It was plain and black, but very important to her. It had taken her months to figure out a proper chemical equation to substitute for many of the materials. It wasn't perfect, not even close, and it didn't have nearly as much elasticity as Vegeta's original body suit, but she was pleased that she had once again completed something so difficult.

Bulma slipped into the body suit and threw her robe and a pair of slippers on over it.

_Why not._

The air in the hallway was cold against her skin, Bulma noticed as she made her way down to Vegeta's room. She knocked and then realized she was being silly. She _had_ slept there the night before.

Bulma entered the room and looked around for Vegeta, but the Saiya-jin no Ouji was nowhere to be found.

_Where is he?_

She glanced at the open door to the balcony as the curtains danced lazily in the breeze from the wind.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Vegeta sat on the railing to the balcony and leaned against the wall of the house. It was cool outside, but the change was more than welcome.

_What in the world could she be doing?_

The onna had stopped after just entering his quarters. No matter, he wasn't in a rush. It wasn't quite dusk yet.

"Vegeta?" These bouts of temerity didn't become her. The worst had already happened, what did she have to be so cautious about?

"There you are," she said as she approached the Saiya-jin no Ouji. She was wearing a flannel robe with vertical blue stripes and pink bunny slippers. At least she wasn't trying to impress him.

"You were expecting someone else?" Vegeta questioned and then turned back to watch the sun start its steady fall toward the horizon.

"Vegeta, is there something you need to tell me? You seem a little tense," asked Bulma as she got even closer to where he was perched.

_Well, at least I didn't have to bring it up._

Vegeta still faced the sun as he began to speak. "There are many things to tell you, and I fear I won't have enough time to communicate all of them to you right now." He turned to her, his eyes aglow. "But a cursory explanation will have to be sufficient." He bared his teeth. Whatever he had to say, he didn't like it.

"Alright, shoot."


	19. chapter eighteen

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Eighteen**

"I have already explained the consequences of an unprepared coupling to you, so I'm not going over any of that again."

Bulma nodded her head.

"There have been certain things going on; certain reactions that have been taking place between our bodies that are beyond our control." He paused again.

Bulma smiled to herself and touched him ever so lightly on the arm. Vegeta turned, unaware of her intentions. He wished she would stop touching him all the time.

What seemed like in slow motion, Bulma leaned her head in and lightly brushed her lips against Vegeta's. It had to be the most sensual thing Vegeta had ever experienced. The hair on his tail bristled.

_What_ _is_ _she doing?_

Vegeta could feel himself tense up.

"Calm down," Bulma whispered in his ear and then kissed the Saiya-jin no Ouji's neck. "I don't bite, at least not _hard_." Vegeta grunted and the onna backed away. If that was her method of calming him down, she was sadly mistaken. Bulma smiled. "Now, what is it that you have to tell me?"

"I'm not waiting to postpone the rituals any longer," he said, staring at her with dilated eyes. "And while there's still have some time left before the end of the _Khon'daia na_, we're only delaying the inevitable." Vegeta let fatalism sink into his voice.

Bulma furrowed her eyebrows. If being attached to her was so disagreeable, why not just wait? She was tired of his half-assed resistance. She wasn't happy about this either.

"Alright," she replied. The statement was simple and free of connotation. "So where do we go from here?" Bulma raised her eyebrows.

"First off, both participants have to be going through the _Khon'daia na_ in order for the rituals to work." Vegeta turned and cast his gaze back on the lowering sun.

"But I'm not a Saiya-jin so I can't—"

"You can, and you _are_ going through it. You woke up yesterday morning feeling nauseous. Today you felt like the room couldn't be cold enough and then it couldn't be hot enough. You've been running a dangerously high fever for a Chikyuu-jin. You felt tired. You couldn't focus your attention..." The list continued as Vegeta stood, still looking on at the sun.

"How did you...?"

"On extremely rare occasions, mates of other species have been known to become subject to Saiya-jin mating customs after a large exchange of energy has occurred. The fact that you're going through the _Khon'daia na,_ is what I believe to be, one such occasion."

"Well, I suppose that explains a lot," said Bulma as she looked away from Vegeta. She had no idea what to say. Guess that explained her acute and overpowering attraction to the Saiya-jin warrior.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

"Really, onna. There's nothing to be embarrassed about. The _Khon'daia na_ taxes the will power of all who experience it." He still wasn't facing her.

'Taxes the will'. Ha. Hadn't _he_ been the one making all the weird passes at _her_ over the last few days? She knew he was right though. There really was nothing to be embarrassed about. But she just didn't like knowing that Vegeta understood how much she wanted him, how much she _needed_ him.

Bulma tightened the collar to her robe in an attempt to calm her nerves. The suit she was wearing went half way up her neck.

"We really must begin. The ceremony must commence before the sun sets."

_So that's why he woke me up..._

Vegeta moved from his post on the railing and Bulma looked up at him, noticing the tension in his face. It reminded her of the way he looked after he'd gone Super Saiya-jin.

He was a good six inches taller than she was. If he'd stood before her in this manner only a few days ago, she was sure she would have found herself intimidated. But it wasn't a few days ago, Bulma reminded herself, and let her worries slip away.

Then Vegeta did the one thing Bulma never thought he would. With that blinding speed she'd seen him use only during training, he grabbed her and put his arms around her. His embrace was rock hard, yet surprisingly gentle. His heart was pounding rapidly.

_He must be as nervous about this as I am. If that's even possible._

The Saiya-jin no Ouji rested his forehead on Bulma's. There was certainly a connection there. Vegeta blinked as if he wondered where the action had come from, and pulled himself away.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

'_Can't you feel it?'_

Her words echoed through his head. He _could_ feel it. He could feel it so strongly it was giving him a headache. The more he tried to figure things out, the more elusive the answer became.

Embracing her was something he hadn't expected. He felt like he was constantly having out of body experiences, unsure of where his actions were coming from. But with her words constantly echoing through his head, the _Khon'daia na_ was getting the better of him. He'd always been better with the physical. Even if that meant breaching his usual, more Saiya-jin, methods and customs.

Fuck, the woman was beautiful. He stared at her. Well, if he was going to be trapped with her forever, at least she wasn't terrible to look at.

Her eyes were glowing silver and somewhere beneath it, blue. That was one of the things he liked about her. She had layers of mystery and complexity. She wasn't two dimensional like all the other vacuous barbies that pranced around on this confusing planet. She was a whole different animal. She was like him.

Bulma broke out into a smile and Vegeta smiled back, something he rarely did.

_Ye gods, I'm turning into one of them,_ he thought. _Barely a year on this planet and I'm already smiling at one of the natives like that idiot Kakkarot._

"Shall we begin?" he asked in a soft whisper.

"We shall." Bulma was still smiling even though some part of her brain was screaming that she be concerned.

The requirements were not many, but essential in the performance of the rituals, Vegeta explained as they made their way back into his quarters. He motioned to the bed and Bulma sat down.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji turned and looked at the Earth female. She was looking at him inquisitively, trying to calculate his next move.

"The steps of the Saiya-jin bonding rituals are meant to promote unity. The rituals themselves help build that unity, and join two individuals... permanently." He hesitated on the last word and paused. "With all that said, do you still wish to continue?"

He found himself simultaneously wishing she'd say 'yes' and 'no'.

Bulma nodded her consent and Vegeta stared at her, waiting.

"Yes." She finally conceded when Vegeta made it obvious that a verbal answer was needed.

"Alright. The first thing I need you to do is take off that robe and those slippers." Bulma hesitated. "I already know about the uniform you're wearing. In fact, I couldn't have picked a better item for you to wear myself. These rituals _are_ supposed to take place between two warriors."

Bulma stepped off the bed and took off her outer layer of clothing.

Vegeta gave her the once over. She looked uncharacteristically nervous. Not that she had anything to be nervous about. Her body was perfect. How could she be comfortable running around in mini skirts and bikinis and yet feel completely exposed wearing a Saiya-jin body suit? Chikyuu-jins had a strange sense of modesty.

"Right," said Bulma as she rejoined him.

"I won't lie to you, onna. Parts of these rituals will be painful to you. Maybe even unbearably so, but you have to trust me."

"You know I trust you with my life," said Bulma honestly. He wasn't sure how to respond to that.

_At least someone trusts me_, he thought with a sneer. _He_ didn't even trust him. Not after the stupid things he'd done over the past few days.

Vegeta got onto the bed and knelt facing Bulma. "You're going to have to sit the way I am, onna, for this to work." Bulma unwrapped her legs from their Indian-style position and knelt the way Vegeta had, resting her bottom on her calves and feet. "The first stage will be a mental bond."

_Well, might as well get this over with._

"Close your eyes. Focus all of your energy before you and onto me." Bulma obediently closed her eyes. This would be the tricky part. While Vegeta had years of experience training with ki and mental energies, Bulma had none. Getting her power to focus directly on him would be difficult, but hopefully not impossible.

Vegeta closed his own eyes and focused all of his energy on Bulma. He didn't like the idea of putting too much weight on her shoulders. She was only a novice at these things. He didn't want to end up a smear on the walls of the room because she didn't know what she was doing.

"Now, I need you to pick up both of your hands and position the palms vertically, facing me. I'm going to do the same as well. There's going to be a strong pull between them, but our hands cannot touch. Understand?" Bulma muttered a soft 'yes' and Vegeta placed his palms up, facing hers. He felt out with his ki as not to touch her.

He was starting to feel the weight of Bulma's own energy on his shoulders, but made sure to keep his eyes closed. Neither of them were supposed to look at the other during this initial process. If their eyes were open, the trance would be broken.

"Now, this is the challenging part. I want you to completely detach yourself from your body. Mentally separate yourself." Vegeta followed his own directions and pulled himself away from consciousness, letting his mental walls disintegrate.

Unbeknownst to them, a blue aura began to glow and surround their bodies. Bulma's hair raised over her head and gently swayed in a breeze created by their own energies.

Vegeta began to feel the tug at his mind and let go of all his reserves. Unexpectedly, and in a jolt, Bulma's hands touched his. A powerful shock warped through Vegeta's body.

_Vegeta...?_ came a timid voice. It was Bulma. Their minds must have melded.

_I'm here, _he spoke out into the never-ending darkness. Bulma appeared before him.

'_Can't you feel it...?'_ There were echoes throughout the darkness. Vegeta turned around in circles, searching for the owner of the voice. Where was Bulma?

'_Can't you feel it...?'_ It echoed again. Vegeta faced the direction the voice was coming from. The whisper was elusive.

_Feel what?_ he called out into the darkness. He was tired of thinking about it. Bulma suddenly appeared.

_Vegeta, thank_ _Kami. What—? Where—?_ It was odd, thought Vegeta, he should have been able to sense her before she was upon him. He must not have been able to access his full powers in this place.

_Our minds have been transferred into a place where they can be brought together. We are in a place that exists, yet does not exist at the same time. I am in your mind and you are in mine,_ Vegeta stated cryptically. How was he supposed to tell her where they were when he didn't know himself?

_So what happens next?_ asked Bulma.

_I'm not quite sure._

_Oh._

Vegeta wasn't comfortable leading Bulma into things that he hadn't quite figured out himself yet, but in this case, it was unavoidable. Bulma reached out and took Vegeta's hand in hers. She smiled.

If he could just understand those words...

_I'm here for you,_ Bulma said to him after noticing the worried look on his face.

_I know. _He grunted. As if she could be any help. She was the one who'd gotten them into this mess in the first place. If he hadn't decided to say on Earth, none of this would have happened.

The whispers silenced.

There was a bright flash of light and Vegeta could feel himself starting to slip, starting to lose control. It was natural, but completely disconcerting. Vegeta tightened his jaw as a sharp wave of pain rolled him.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji tingled all over. There was a presence looming in the back of his mind that he assumed was Bulma. Vegeta fought back the bile that was rising in his throat.

Bulma opened her eyes. They were crystal clear and glowing even brighter than before.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

_Don't be frightened._

Bulma was looking right at Vegeta as he spoke the words to her mentally.

"I'm not frightened," she retored. Even if it _had _been the most painful thing she ever experienced. _Not_ that she was about to admit that.

Vegeta reached out his hand and wiped the remnants of the tear off of Bulma's face.

"That was..." Bulma trailed off.

"Only the beginning," Vegeta finished for her.

"You felt it too?" asked Bulma nearly in shock.

"Does it surprise you so much that I'm capable of feeling pain, Bulma?" asked Vegeta in a soft voice. She wasn't sure what to make of his use of her name. He usually only did that when she'd done something particularly frustrating.

"I suppose not."


	20. chapter nineteen

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Nineteen**

Did Bulma honestly think that after spending so much time on Chikyuu, he wouldn't start to become acclimated to their ways and culture?

"You said there were three sides of a bond..." started Bulma.

"Yes," he said, deciding to let it pass. He didn't care if she found him heartless. It was closer to the truth than anything else. "There are three sides, three pillars. We have just completed the first pillar, the mental bond." Still seeing the question on Bulma's face, Vegeta continued. "The second bond is a physical bond, and the third, a spiritual. The third pillar is unlike the other two bonds. It's not created through a ritual. It takes years, even decades, for most mates to even begin to develop a spiritual bond."

"I see," said Bulma in response. That sounded uncannily like love, but she decided not to mention it. Heaven forbid Saiya-jin mating had anything in common with Earth. Love meant that a warrior was capable of compassion. And Vegeta was _not_ the compassionate sort. Freeza had seen to that.

"I don't expect you to understand the complete gravity of all of this, onna," said Vegeta.

_Hell, _I _don't understand it._

Bulma smiled at Vegeta tightly and edged forward. She wrapped her arms around him, not deterred at all by his reaction. She was going to break him of his distaste for Earth customs one way or another.

He must have felt like a brick wall, Vegeta considered as he sat rigidly. It was difficult to get used to the displays of emotion that Bulma participated in regularly. They came upon him so quickly.

"Look, Vegeta, despite what you may think, I'm not dense enough to pretend you're someone you're not." She pulled away. "And while I may not understand many things about you, I _do_ know that you are first and foremost a Saiya-jin warrior." Vegeta felt a pang of some unknown emotion.

She imagined what it would be like to love this impossible man. The prospect of it wasn't _completely_ unappealing.

Vegeta was the most dominant and confident man she'd ever met. Granted, his eyes were always shadowed, hiding thoughts that she was sure would terrify her. She wasn't ready to deal with everything he must have experienced while serving Freeza, but over the past few months he had slowly let her in, slowly let her see some part of the real him behind the harsh words and fleeting glares. The Saiya-jin no Ouji—the prince without a destiny.

The tension was still building in the air. Confessionals had never been Bulma's strongest suit and she always felt uncomfortable after having a 'heart to brutal Saiya-jin warrior' talk with Vegeta. At least there was _some_ humanity behind Vegeta's hooded eyes and demeanor.

He stared at her, the emotions flitting across his face only briefly. These cracks in stoicism were unlike him.

"The next bond," started Vegeta, shaking Bulma out of her reverie, "is physical, although this may be more painful than you expect." Bulma's heart started racing. Of course she _knew_ what the word 'physical' implied, but she found herself curiously self-conscious at the idea. Despite what the tabloids said, Yamcha had been the only man she'd ever given herself to and that was only after years of courtship.

"On Vegeta-sei, bonded couples were not forced to publicly announce their union, they didn't have to."

_Back to the history lesson._

"Namely because this part of the ritual requires that both mates accept the bond by creating a mark. In our case, it will be the sign of the Royal House of Vegeta-sei." He motioned to the symbol stitched into his breastplate.

_Oh, _she thought, taken aback. This, she wasn't expecting. And, obviously, Vegeta didn't intend for her to use a branding iron.

"Give me a moment, onna. I know you have many questions," Vegeta gloated, enjoying the idea that for once Bulma was out of her depths. He was resorting to being an ass. She couldn't expect him to be nice forever, she supposed. "You and I share a mutual energy created by the opposite charge that exists between us. Those charges are strong enough to create the mark if focused properly."

"I understand," Bulma said before Vegeta had a chance to doubt her competence. He really could be a prick sometimes. She smiled.

"Alright," he said as if it were the easiest thing in the world, "then do as I say." Vegeta turned away and pulled the formal breastplate over his head. It fell to the ground with a clank and Bulma watched as Vegeta removed the upper half of his body suit, exposing the entirety of his back to her. The light from the balcony danced across Vegeta's copper skin, and Bulma's fingers itched to run along its smooth surface.

"Place the palm of your hand directly between my shoulder blades, but do not let it touch the skin. Leave an inch or two of separation."

"Okay," said Bulma when she had done as he said.

"Now, focus all your energy as I had you do before, except just in that tiny area. Form a picture of the crest with your mind and feel the energy move through you to create the pattern. " Bulma closed her eyes and followed his instructions. It was times like these she was grateful for photographic memory.

The energy began to slowly make its way down her arm and toward Vegeta's back. As it crept along, the pull strengthened and Bulma found she had to use more of her energy to keep herself from touching him than to channel the pattern. Bulma released the breath she didn't know she was holding. As if eagerly waiting to be released, a small but intense beam of light escaped her flattened hand, and absorbed into the Saiya-jin's skin.

Vegeta hissed.

_It must be painful, _thought Bulma dejectedly. She'd seen him bruised and bleeding, nearly to the point of death before, and his impassive mask had never altered.

When Bulma removed her hand she could see the symbol of the House of Vegeta-sei glowing directly between Vegeta's shoulder blades. It was pulsing that strange silvery blue energy she'd seen the night on the balcony. Vegeta still hadn't turned around, but Bulma could hear his labored breathing as she tentatively reached out and touched the symbol she'd created.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The burning sensation that accompanied the energy Bulma released wasn't the most painful thing about the whole experience. What _had_ been painful was the feeling of the pull against his skin as their energies brushed, but were never fully allowed to touch each other.

The coolness of Bulma's palm deeply contrasted the heat radiating from the burn on Vegeta's back. The contact was soothing, but startling. He was supremely aware the small yet steady pulse coming from Bulma's hand.

"Are you ready?" asked Vegeta. His voice was hoarse with pain, strained self control, and something like emotion.

Some traitorous voice whispered in his mind that she wasn't. She never would be. Vegeta let the self-doubt clouding his mind slip away. She would do this, not just because she had to, but maybe because some part of her wanted him. Vegeta stopped letting his thoughts wander, the Saiya-jin no Ouji should not have to doubt the loyalty of his mate. He shouldn't have to doubt anyone.

"As ready as I'll ever be," said Bulma with a resigned tone of voice.

"Alright then." Bulma started to swap positions with Vegeta.

_It's not like she could refuse anyway. It would kill us. The pain would be too overwhelming._

Because that was much better. She was doing this because it was less painful than the alternative. He grunted. Her reasons didn't matter. Where was all this self-doubt coming from? Besides, Bulma's never did anything just because she was forced. She thrived on resisting opposing forces.

Bulma reached back and tentatively pulled at the zipper that extended from the neck of the body suit down to the middle of her back. She removed her arms from the sleeves and pressed the material against her breasts with her arms. She wanted to feel as unexposed as possible.

Staring at her pale back, Vegeta realized how fragile she looked. Her frame was tiny in comparison to his. Her shoulder blades poked out at him accusingly and she glowed an eerie pearl color in the moonlight—almost bluish. Some of Bulma's damp hair lost its place and fell down her back. Vegeta smoothed the hair to the side, gently trailing his fingers along her bare skin. Bulma didn't move.

_Might as well get on with it,_ thought Vegeta.

He placed his hand a few inches away from Bulma's exposed shoulder blades and summoned the energy.

Bulma let out a very Saiya-jin hiss.

_She's stronger than I thought, _Vegeta commented to himself and mentally commended Bulma. The pain she was feeling was difficult to bear. It had been difficult for _him_ to bear, and that was something. He'd had countless years of training in Freeza's army—more than enough to teach him how to overcome obstacles like _pain_.


	21. chapter twenty

Insert standard disclaimer here.

WARNING: Lemon.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty**

Bulma's pain was soon assuaged as Vegeta pulled his hand back and looked at the work of his creation. He ran the tips of his fingers across the glowing symbol, activating it. The symbol began to glow with a rhythm, a beat—the beat of his heart, he realized somewhat awkwardly. That must have been why Bulma reacted so strangely; she must have come to the same realization.

_This process just keeps getting more intriguing, _thought Vegeta as he stared blankly at the glowing symbol. The sign of the House of Vegeta-sei cast light upon Bulma's pale skin, making it appear translucent. She glowed with the combination of their two energies. _He_ was glowing, he noticed all at once as he looked down at his skin and saw the gold tint of ki flaring up around him.

Bulma was taking in short and shallow breaths.

A wave of nausea crashed over Vegeta and he latched onto the helpless female, grabbing her around the shoulders and pressing his chest against her bare back. There was a bright flash and a sharp, acute pain.

It was searing. Vegeta felt as if his blood was boiling and his skin freezing all at the same time. Just when he thought he could take it no longer, the light that pierced his vision so thoroughly intensified even more and then faded. As his senses began to return, the Saiya-jin no Ouji was surprised to see that Bulma hadn't fainted during the ordeal.

_Strong girl._

Bulma shuddered and Vegeta realized that he was still clutching her tightly. She didn't seem bothered by the pressure though. The grip was more than sufficient to try the flexibility of her bones. There was a thin sheen of cold sweat glistening on Bulma's back and the air was perfumed with her feminine scent.

Bulma leaned her head back onto Vegeta's shoulder. She was still breathing heavily and her eyes were closed. Strands of her aqua hair were stuck to her forehead.

The tunic Bulma was holding up did little to conceal the majority of her breasts as she tried desperately to let her breath catch up with her. Vegeta groaned to himself when he noticed how exposed she was. He was already having trouble controlling his body.

Slowly, Vegeta lowered his lips onto Bulma's collar bone and kissed it. The action was meant as a reassurance but upon the contact Bulma's eyes shot open. They were glowing more intensely than Vegeta had ever seen them before. Vegeta felt uneasy, a feeling (of the few he ever experience) that was especially rare.

"Vegeta?" questioned Bulma. Her voice seemed to resonate in his bones.

Bulma turned around and reached out to touch Vegeta's face.

"You're ice cold." His eyes burned a gold that was unmatched in brilliance. As Bulma let her hand fall, her fingers traced a path down Vegeta's chest. Abruptly, Vegeta grabbed her hand.

"No more." It was a statement Bulma seemed ill prepared for. She began to pull away.

_No more..._

Vegeta's mind trailed off as he tugged on Bulma's arm and pulled her up against him. Their eyes met briefly and before Bulma knew it, Vegeta's mouth was upon hers.

There was nothing gentle about Vegeta's sudden surge of lust but Bulma wasn't intimidated by it. She was excited. She reveled in Vegeta's show of primal need.

The gi forgotten, Bulma released the arm that was between them and wrapped it firmly around Vegeta's neck, pouring as much of her own desire into the kiss as she could.

A growl erupted from low in Vegeta's throat and Bulma relaxed in his grip, keeping a strong hold on the Saiya-jin no Ouji as he briefly shifted himself to kiss Bulma's neck and unzip the rest of her body suit. Bulma subconsciously tugged at the elastic top to Vegeta's gi bottoms. The urge to be skin to skin was unbearable.

Finally free of their clothing, Vegeta laid Bulma down on the bed and kissed her deeply, only pulling back for a moment to look down at her. Just as he'd always thought, she wasn't anything like the other scrawny Chikyuu-jin females he'd seen splashed on the covers of magazines or on television. Her fairness was a classic: well-muscled and toned with pale skin that complimented the luscious curves of her body. She was perfect. She was _his._

Bulma tentatively reached out a hand and ran it along Vegeta's chest, leaving what felt like a trail of burns down the Saiya-jin no Ouji's skin. She sat for a few more minutes running her fingers over every contour of his body as if reassuring herself that he was real. He was chiseled and almost as firm as a statue.

Hooking her arm around Vegeta's neck, Bulma kissed his jaw and slowly trailed her way down to the most sensitive part of his neck, biting him playfully as she wrapped her free hand, as best she could, around the base of him and squeezed. He was already hard. Immediately, Vegeta wound his tail around Bulma's waist and growled deeply in the back of his throat.

"Do you enjoy teasing me, onna?" purred Vegeta and put his lips right up against Bulma's ear. "Because two can play at that game..." he trailed off as he bit her neck with equal pressure. Slowly, he kissed his way down her neck and to her chest. Gently, yet firmly, he cupped her right breast and massaged her hardened nipple while kissing his way down to her left. Bulma arched her back.

"Not very much fun, is it, little onna?" purred Vegeta in her ear once again. But it _was_ fun, and he knew what he was doing to her. Her heightened senses were picking up his every move ten, if not twenty times, more than they usually did as a side effect of the _Khon'daia na._ Bulma groaned and pulled him back down. Vegeta couldn't help but smile.

Finally, he could get this out of his system.

Without hesitation, Vegeta messaged his way down Bulma's stomach with his other hand, increasing the circulation in the lower half of her body before exploring the rest of her. He wasn't surprised to find her wet and ready and Bulma moaned her pleasure in response to his probing touch.

"Vegeta..." Bulma sighed, causing the Saiya-jin prince to look up at her. Bulma leaned up and kissed the Saiya-jin no Ouji's neck and wrapped her arms and legs around his torso. Vegeta looked down at her questioningly. He knew what she wanted, and, damn it all to hell, he knew he wanted the same thing.

"You're too tight, onna," he said to appease her while secretly reveling in the feeling of her more delicate parts being exposed to his calloused fingertips.

In her persistence, Bulma bucked her hips and then pulled away. Vegeta looked down in amazement. She was quite the little aggressor, wasn't she? All she did was grin. It was a beautiful grin, a Saiya-jin grin.

"Only if you wish it, onna," Vegeta purred seductively in her ear. She really was going to have to figure out how he did that. Vegeta chuckled to himself.

Bulma slid her arms higher up on Vegeta's back and nipped at his ear lobe. She could have no comprehension of what she was doing to him, and if she _did_ know, she was certainly using her knowledge well. Vegeta's instincts were starting to take over and his mind was taking the backseat. Never had he felt so completely out of control, not even the moment in the GR when he reached the level of the Legendary.

"Oh, believe me, I do," she whispered in a low, guttural tone of voice and then nipped at his jaw.

"Very well," Vegeta replied as Bulma proceeded to bite, not so delicately, at the base of his neck.

He hovered above her entrance for a second before pushing his way slowly in, inch by inch. She was agonizingly tight.

Bulma groaned Vegeta's name as he filled her. He touched every piece of her, nearly overloading her body with the sudden onslaught of sensation—his wide girth pushing against all of her at once. She cried out as he hit the end of her and ground his hips for a deeper angle.

Ever so slowly, Vegeta began to pull himself out of her before rocking down and resting some of his weight back on Bulma. The rhythm was tantalizingly slow and Vegeta took his time, savoring the feeling of his mate writhing beneath him. He nipped at her neck cautiously, aware that her increased sensitivity created a fine line between pleasure and pain. But as his speed progressed, Vegeta grazed his teeth against the fleshy juncture between Bulma's neck and shoulder with less concern.

Bulma's nails trailed along Vegeta's back, leaving a mess of scratch marks on his otherwise unblemished skin. He knew she was close and as her muscles flexed around him Vegeta forced himself inside of her even more deeply, locking Bulma in her moment of release. Vegeta watched as Bulma's face became pained as she struggled with the intensity of the pleasure and her own desire to maintain control. But after a few seconds of ecstasy, Bulma released her vice-like hold on Vegeta and shuddered.

"That was…" Bulma's breathy voice trailed off. She panted heavily, trying to calm her beating heart, while laying back contently on the bed—the smile on her face an indication of her complete satisfaction.

Without warning, Vegeta ground himself forcefully against Bulma, eager to remind her that they were far from through for the evening.

"Now, it's my turn," said the Saiya-jin no Ouji with a devilish grin, "and this time, onna, you _will_ scream."

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

_"Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan… Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan…"_


	22. chapter twentyone

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty-One**  
_  
"Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan"_  
_  
"Vegeta..."_

Bulma was woke in her sleep, covered in a cold sweat. Had she been dreaming, or were those words still echoing in her ears? Vegeta still lay beside her. His eyes were open and he was looking at her inquisitively. He reached out and brushed a strand of hair from her face. She'd been sleeping nearly two hours. Had he been awake beside her the entire time?  
_  
It's all right, onna, you're safe._ Vegeta spoke into her mind. Bulma wondered if she'd ever acclimate to the sensation.

She nodded in response and moved closer to Vegeta, setting her head on his chest and carelessly wrapping her free arm around his torso. Her back was exposed in spite of the blanket she was under, and Vegeta reached out to touch the mark between her shoulder blades. The blue had faded slightly, but upon his touch, re-illuminated.

Bulma had never seen this much tenderness in him. It was hard for her to believe that it was _Vegeta_ she was laying there with, the Saiya-jin no Ouji. The occurrences of the night before did little to quench her thirst for him, if anything, it made her want him more. Was he skilled in everything?

~~~~~~~(((((|||))))~~~~~~~

Vegeta watched the woman from his position on the bed. Partaking in physical intimacy with her had been unexpectedly staggering. And it didn't have anything to do with the fact that he hadn't coupled in some time. This was different. His master plan to mate with her and thus halt the confusing emotions he was feeling had failed miserably. Now he only wanted her more. Shit, what was he going to do?

He was a warrior before anything else. Anything. And now he was completely bonded to the Earth female. He felt a twinge of guilt as he considered this but quickly pushed it to the back of his mind as he considered the smooth and creamy skin exposed to him. He wasn't alone anymore, but at what cost?

The woman was beautiful when she slept. There were a few other positions he thought she looked beautiful in as well. He smiled to himself devilishly. He'd warn her out. Scratch that, they were _both_ worn out. Besides the effect of the _Khon'daia na,_ the mating ritual itself was both mentally and physically draining. Not that he was complaining.

Bulma shifted. She was moving, dreaming.

On several occasions Vegeta had tried to use their bond to get inside her thoughts and find out what was tormenting her, but there was a sturdy mental block in place still.

She was sweating and murmuring his name.  
_  
"Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan."_

His voice trailed off as his wiped the sweat from her forehead. Although he still found comfort to be a strange Chikyuu-jin custom, it allowed him to be closer to the onna. He needed to better understand the workings of her alien mind, so he would learn the skill. Even if it involved those strange touching rituals she seemed so fond of.

Bulma groaned, rolled over, and opened her eyes. She looked upon him as if she hadn't seen him in years or thought they only had so much time left. She smiled weekly and once again draped her arm over the Saiya-jin no Ouji, trailing her fingers back and forth slowly over his toned abdominals.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

_He's still here, _thought Bulma, relieved. Although she was becoming more accustomed to the bizarre dreams, they still left her feeling confused and lonely. Waking up to see Vegeta's face was just what she needed.  
_  
Of course I'm here. Where did you think I went? Vegeta-sei? _Vegeta answered mentally with a chuckle. Bulma's eyes widened at his response.

"Yes," replied a baffled Bulma aloud. Vegeta removed Bulma's arm and rolled over so that he was on top of her. Placing his hands on either side of her head, he looked her in the eyes.

"Listen, the only place it exists now, is _here_." Vegeta tapped his temple with his index finger. The Saiya-jin no Ouji looked down at her. His facial expression was hard but his eyes were that rich chocolate brown laced with gold. Her fingers ran over his lips in a silencing motion before she wrapped her arms around him and pulled his lips down upon her own.

_For now._

It was only the first time he'd done it, and he already hated lying to her.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Try as she might, Bulma could not rid herself of the visions of Vegeta going off to some unknown battle. The completion of the mating ritual only made the dream worse.

Bulma glanced over at the digital clock by her bed. 11:57 PM. She threw off the blankets and reached for her robe, groaning as it stuck to her naked body. She was covered in a cold sweat yet again.

She hadn't expected Vegeta to be beside her when she woke up, he never was, so she wasn't shocked when she found there wasn't a warm Saiya-jin laying beside her. The door creaked as she opened it and made her way down the staircase and into the kitchen.

Every night for the past two weeks she'd been woken by the feeling of an energy swell, usually a negatively charged energy swell. Not that it alarmed her, Vegeta was always training. Recently, the Saiya-jin no Ouji's training schedule had become particularly brutal. She knew he was struggling with himself—his warrior side fighting for the dominance it had started to lose with the formation of their bond.__

Do you remember the first time we met?

Bulma was jolted out of her thoughts by Vegeta's sudden mental interjection.

"How could I forget? We were on Namek. I was more afraid of you than Freeza," commented Bulma with a reminiscent grin that strikingly resembled Vegeta's.

Vegeta smirked and looked down into the mug of coffee that was sitting stagnant and cold before him. There was a period of silence. Bulma could feel nothing coming from Vegeta although his tail swayed behind him, twitching at the tip.  
_  
Dad's cat must not be within pouncing range, _thought Bulma with a mental block up so Vegeta wouldn't hear her slightly humorous comment.

"I was close, so _close,_" said Vegeta as he brought his fist down upon the kitchen table. His voice was harsh and raspy. "It's like something is holding me back. I can feel it. I can _feel_ the power of the Legendary. I know I'm almost there." He was looking up at her now. His eyes were golden in the darkness of the room.

Bulma wrapped her robe around herself a little more tightly and approached the Saiya-jin no Ouji. She didn't know what to say. It was just the same as so many other nights when she'd come downstairs to either watch him train in the GR or to pay him company as he ate. Bulma pulled out the chair beside Vegeta and sat, resting her head on his shoulder.  
_  
_Visions of Namek and Freeza's evil laughter shot through Bulma's unshielded mind. Her eyes widened and a half second later, Vegeta threw up an iron-clad mental wall. He was slipping again.

Bulma sat up. "Listen to me, I may not be a Saiya-jin and I may not know what it's like to become the Legendary, but I _do_ know this: you are on Earth now. What will happen, will happen. From what I can tell, this isn't something that can be forced." Bulma looked him strait in the eyes. "And I _cannot_ lose you just because you're pushing yourself closer to death everyday. What goal is worth that?" Bulma stood up and walked back up the stairs to her room.

Vegeta just watched her go in silence.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

It felt good to be in cotton PJs. Bulma loved how cool they felt on her skin as she slid under the blankets. She pondered her brief conversation with Vegeta earlier in the kitchen and sighed. There was so much she didn't understand. So much she didn't know if she wanted to understand.  
_  
Vegeta, who are you? Who made you into what you've become?_

Bulma allowed her thoughts to run wild as she contemplated the atrocities Freeza had forced him to commit. And now he was slowly killing himself so he could become the next Super Saiya-jin.

She would not lose him. She would not let his past ruin their relationship. Come hell or Freeza himself, she would not see Vegeta destroyed again.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Vegeta sat at the kitchen table for what seemed like hours after Bulma left. What was he doing? Wasting his time on nostalgia? Was being around _her_ making him soft? Was Chikyuu finally atrophying his brain cells?

Who the hell was she to tell him to let it go? Did she even know what she was asking? They were bonded, but that didn't mean he was going to give up what was most important to him.

He glanced up at the stairway that led to her quarters and then through the window at the dark shape of the lab building that was a hundred yards away. The house was silent. Bulma was probably already asleep.

He was confused and confusion made him irritated. The onna had been right about one thing. He was a warrior. He was born a warrior and he would die a warrior.


	23. chapter twentytwo

Insert standard disclaimer here.****

The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty-Two

Bulma could feel an aching in her gut and it worried her. She'd only been in her room for an hour but she could already feel something was wrong. _Very_ wrong.

Anxious to sooth whatever was ailing her mate, Bulma sought out Vegeta's ki signature. The dreams she'd been having did little for her own mental stability. They were making her paranoid.  
_  
Vegeta?  
_  
Bulma sent out a mental probe as she got out of bed. Vegeta's door was slightly ajar, much as it had been the fateful night his energy had first converged with her body. Pushing the door open, a gentle light greeted her. Quietly, she made her way into his bed chamber and padded along the soft carpet to his bed. The bedclothes were still disheveled. Bulma thought she wouldn't mind if she never saw a made bed again if their activities were the cause of its disarray. She smiled despite herself.

Bulma's attentions were drawn to the balcony and the drapes that gently flowed in the breeze. The glow of the moon pooled around her feet as she approached the open window. Warmed from the summer heat, the smell of cinnamon breeze filled Bulma's lungs. As she approached the open door, she was taken aback by a tingling all over her body. The sensation which had begun in her fingers and toes intensified the closer she came to the balcony. A sudden fear struck her.

"Vegeta!" The Saiya-jin no Ouji, one of the strongest fighters in the universe, lay covered in a thin sheen of sweat on the cold concrete surface of the balcony, completely crumpled. The entirety of his body was consumed in a burning blue flame—all except the mark on his upper back which was a deep black.

Struck by the most terrifying of thoughts, Bulma reached for her mate through the inferno. She screamed.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The sky that greeted Bulma upon her waking could only be described in one word: breathtaking. And despite the shock it had caused her at seeing a sky of such a strange hue, for some reason she felt surprisingly at home.  
_  
Red, the sky is... red?  
_  
Bulma sighed mentally as she blankly stared at the rust colored sky which, by all rights, ought to be foreign to her. Glancing around at her new surroundings, Bulma's eyes slowly began to focus on the strange, raw landscape. The clearing she found herself in was encompassed by thick vegetation and a forest with trees that looked ancient and all-knowing. Mountains could be seen off in the distance and the slow change of the orange-red sky to a deep purple indicated the steady change of day to night.  
_  
Where is this place?_ When _is this place?_

Bulma's heart began to race as she contemplated her whereabouts, or rather, her inability to distinguish her whereabouts. Bulma racked her brain.  
_  
I was on the balcony. There was a burning glow coming from Vegeta...  
_  
And then nothing. That was all she was left with, absolutely nothing. Try as she might, her genius simply wasn't enough to help her determine what had happened out on the balcony and what had led her here—to a completely alien world. The smell of the forest filled her nostrils as her senses returned. It wasn't like any other smell she had ever encountered. _This_ was the smell of nature, _this_ was a smell that could never be forgotten. It was rich and in its own sad and glorious way, haunting, like the smell of a lover's cologne lingering on a pillow.

The sore throat Bulma had been ignoring during her observations announced itself as the sound of rushing water filled her ears. A stream, which up until now Bulma had failed to notice, seemed to run along the center of the small clearing.  
_  
Wow, icy cold, _thought Bulma as she dipped her bare foot into the clear, welcoming water. Despite its shallow depth, the current was strong and Bulma was almost positive that the water fueling this lonely little stream came from a waterfall.

Always the adventurer, or at least when necessity called for it, Bulma headed upstream in search of the source. Running water was a valuable commodity for all living creatures and she hoped to encounter someone, anyone, if she made it to the stream's source.

Bulma let her thoughts wander as she followed the stream up a small embankment. It worried her that she wasn't worried. She knew that recent events with Vegeta and her sudden arrival here should leave her frantic, but truth be told, she had never felt more comfortable or relaxed. Something was amiss, and that, more than the fact that she was in a strange place, worried her.  
_  
Where's Vegeta? Why am I here?  
_  
Thoughts of the last moments in her known reality plagued her as concern for her mate surfaced.  
_  
Why was his mark black?  
_  
She couldn't put it all together. There were many pieces to this puzzle, but as she'd never been unable to solve a problem in her life, she didn't let it bother her.

The stream she'd been following progressively deepened and widened into a full-flowing river with a formidable current. The embankment which was first just gently sloping became steeper as Bulma climbed up through the underbrush and eventually came to a plateau. At first there was too much brush for Bulma to make anything out clearly, but she continued, following the violent sound of crashing water. A gradual change from soft turf to hard pebbles and stone indicated that she was coming closer, but also reminded her that she was still in her PJ's and wasn't wearing any shoes.

As if her sudden awareness of undress triggered a chemical reaction, Bulma began to feel cold. As she neared the body of water, the warm, comfortable breeze she'd been enjoying dissipated. The closer she came, the more she felt consumed by a sense of calm, absolute stillness, and a chill that seeped into her bones. Pushing the last branches aside, Bulma found herself at the edge of a small pool of icy-cold water. It shimmered orange and yellow in the fading daylight.

Her thirst returning to her, Bulma leaned over and examined the translucent, invitingly cold water. It didn't _appear_ to have anything wrong with it.  
_  
But looks can be deceiving._

After contemplating the possible risks to her heath a few moments longer, Bulma finally decided to dip her hand in for a drink. The water was cool in her palm and even cooler and she sipped it and let it sooth her parched throat.

The snap of a twig alerted Bulma of possible danger, and in an instant she raised her head to search for the source of the sound.

"Why, hello there, little one," came a coarse, almost amused voice from the other side of the pool. Bulma's eyes widened as she took in the figure. Gold-tipped boots, a bronzed, muscular torso, body armor, and a twitching, brown tail. Bulma attempted to stifle a gasp as one utterly confused and terrified thought crossed her mind.

_Saiya-jins...?_


	24. chapter twentythree

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty-Three**  
_  
Saiya-jins..._

The pounding of Bulma's heart sounded like a drum in her ears as she stared at the imposing figure. The figure who, by all rights, shouldn't exist. The Saiya-jins had been wiped out years ago; the whole planet destroyed. But if that were true, how was it that there was a living, breathing Saiya-jin, a rather frightening one at that, standing before her and smirking?

"Really, _onna_, how is it that you came to be in this part of the royal forest? You _do_ know what the penalty is for slaves found out here, don't you?" His voice violence incarnate, and it scared her out of her wits. Bulma's facial expression must have given her away. The Saiya-jin's smirk deepened. The pounding of her heart returned to her ears and she could almost feel the adrenaline coursing through her veins.

"Why so frightened, little one?" cooed the Saiya-jin mockingly as he uncrossed his massive arms. He flexed one of his hands. It was a hand that looked like it could turn bone into fine powder. "I promise this will be painless."

Bulma had heard enough. Before she knew what she was doing, she ran for the edge of the pool and dove in, straight to the bottom of the clear water, and began to swim with all her might. It didn't matter that the Saiya-jin could remove her with little effort, she only knew that she had to escape. There was no way in hell she was going down without a fight.

There was a loud splash and Bulma found herself out of the water, coughing, and lying painfully on the sharp pebbles and rocks around the pool edge. The sting of the cold air sent shivers down Bulma's body as she rubbed her sore, tingling right arm. It was the arm the Saiya-jin used to forcefully remove her from the safety of the water.

"I admire your courage, little onna," said the Saiya-jin in what seemed like a sincere voice. Well, as sincere as it could be coming from a soaking wet, seven foot tall warrior with a tail. His voice wasn't as gruff as it had been earlier, but amused.

Bulma glanced at him sideways in an anxious manner. The Saiya-jin began to laugh. This time, the sound wasn't as menacing, but instead reverberated in his chest, a deep rumble. If it had come from anyone but a giant, trained killer, Bulma might have smiled, but as things were, she could only stare at him blankly. The cold was starting to get to her and her teeth chattered.  
_  
What am I doing here? This is insanity, _thought Bulma as shivering overwhelmed her.

"Rather thin blooded aren't you, little onna?" commented the Saiya-jin with a hint of concern. Bulma couldn't figure him out. One moment he was threatening to kill her and then the next he was feigning concern. Did all Saiya-jins enjoy playing with their prey? Frankly, she thought it was one of their more annoying heritable personality traits.

Lost in her thoughts, Bulma wasn't expecting the sudden wave of warm energy being omitted from the burly Saiya-jin beside her. Turning her head slowly, Bulma gazed at the Saiya-jin and the faint aura that now surrounded the both of them. Her eyebrows knitted together. There was something familiar about him. He had long hair that flowed in spikes past his waist, and brown, angular eyes set below dark, bushy eyebrows. His cheekbones were high and strong and there was something about his nose which just set his face perfectly. He was attractive, in a caveman sort of way, Bulma supposed. All Saiya-jins seemed to carry _that_ heritable trait as well.

"You're staring, onna. Honestly, am I _that_ frightening?" He seemed to be teasing, but Bulma could still sense some sort of pent up aggression behind his words.

"Sorry." That was all she could get out and it was timid and wavering at that. She started to relax. There were just certain things she couldn't control, and being held captive by a Saiya-jin, qualified as one of them. She began to shiver again. The thin fabric of the PJ's she was wearing was still damp and did little to keep in any body heat despite the Saiya-jin's more than confusing attempt at warming her.

"Why don't you take off that ridiculously thin robe you're wearing, onna? It's only contributing to your shivering. If it's still wet, take it off so it can dry." The Saiya-jin interrupted her reverie. He had a good point, and although Bulma still couldn't figure out how his malice turned to concern so quickly, she decided to take his advice. Peeling off the soggy cotton fabric, Bulma cringed as her skin was exposed to the air. The mark on her back was still sore and temperature changes caused it to sting much like a tattoo.  
_  
That's right. My mark..._

The Saiya-jin sitting next to her hissed as he suddenly took in 10 gallons of air through his teeth.

"I thought you bore a mark, little one, but the House of _Vegeta-sei_?" The Saiya-jin's words had become coarse again and _his_ eyebrows were now knitted together.

Bulma looked at him as if contemplating what to say. "How could you tell I had a mark?" she asked after a few moments.

"That ridiculously thin garment you were wearing became transparent when you dove into the water. I could see the black quite clearly though not enough to make out which symbol you possessed." His voice was distanced, monotone. It became clear to her that he was keeping a physical distance of at least five feet, even when he was warming her with his ki.

"Ah, so _that's_ why you didn't harm me," muttered Bulma under her breath. Guess Vegeta's history lessons were useful after all.

"I am not permitted to harm mated partners especially those bearing the sacred mark. It is a mark of nobility." He seemed to be regurgitation memorized information, some sort of code he had to follow.  
_  
Wait, did he say that my mark was black?_

Bulma was confused. Wasn't it aqua earlier that week? Earlier that _day_? What was going on? Where was she? Why was all of this happening?

"Where _is_ this place?" asked Bulma absently.

"I already told you, we're in the royal gardens," repeated the Saiya-jin in slight irritation. "Judging by your mark, you should know this already. Ye gods, I had no idea that the King had taken a..." He trailed off.

"Yes, yes. But on what _planet_ are we?" asked Bulma impatiently. The Saiya-jin gave her an incredulous look. Bulma couldn't blame him.

"Why Vegeta-sei, of course. Capital of the Saiya-jin Empire." He stated it with pride but confusion. She must have seemed like a lunatic to him.

"Thank you," replied Bulma in shock. Everything around her started to become fuzzy.

The Saiya-jin barely had enough time to catch her as she collapsed, finally giving into her confusion and the bliss of unconsciousness.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

"You found her _where_?" An angry, familiar voice crept out of the darkness.

"In the gardens. She was quite aways out, sire. I could think of no other place to take her but here," came another, respectful, familiar voice.

"Who is she? Did she bare any other identification other than the... the..." The voice trailed off. He seemed ashamed, intimidated, and offended by the word he couldn't quite manage to speak.

"No, nothing other than the strange garments she was wearing. They couldn't have been distributed on Vegeta-sei." His voice was factual, military.

"'Princess'... do you suppose she really is one? It's written all over her clothing." There was a shuffling noise and Bulma could only assume that the voice was gesturing towards some unknown item.  
_  
Wait a second,_ Princess_? Those are my favorite pajama bottoms!_

Bulma started to shift around in the bed, trying to force her body to revive. But she did not have the energy to pull herself from the darkness fogging up the world around her. She whimpered.

There was more shuffling as both men turned in her direction.

"She spoke with the authority of royalty, sire. I believe it is possible." The voice seemed distracted.

"I just don't understand how it could be... how she could bear _it_... after so many years. It has been so long since a member of the House of Vegeta-sei has..." He trailed off. "I need to know everything. _Everything_. Every detail about her. I want to be the first one to speak to her when she regains consciousness, do you understand?" The voice was demanding and harsh as he spoke to the other man.

"Yes, sire," responded the other Saiya-jin.  
_  
He must be the one from the lake, _thought Bulma as she tried to prevent herself from slipping back into the black oblivion that was sleep.

"She's regaining consciousness." There were footsteps approaching her bed and Bulma whimpered some more. "Rather beautiful, isn't she?" asked the voice standing beside her as he gently removed a stray strand of hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. The aura was familiar to her. More than familiar. "Who are you?" His voice was breathy and rough.

"Vegeta..." His name was all she managed before the comfort of an exhausted sleep overtook her once again.


	25. chapter twentyfour

Insert standard disclaimer here.  
**  
The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty-Four**

"I don't understand, Radditz," the Saiya-jin no Ouji began to brood. He didn't like situations like these. He didn't like situations that he couldn't explain, especially ones that involved _him_, and if some levity didn't come soon he had the distinct feeling he was going to blow something up.

"Neither do I, sire." Radditz stood upright with his feet shoulder-width apart and his hands behind his back. It was the stance he had been trained to stand in all his life around royalty.  
_  
Yes, I have the military to thank for my perfect posture, _thought Radditz with a sarcastic smirk.

"Why the hell are you smirking, you fool?" the fiesty prince nearly screamed. He felt as if the muscles in his neck would snap at any moment.

"My apologies, sire. I did not realize I was smirking." Radditz immediately sobered. The Prince was one Saiya-jin he _definitely_ didn't want to piss off. He didn't really understand what had Vegeta's panties in a bunch though.

The Saiya-jin no Ouji began pacing up the crimson carpet in the hallway outside of his quarters. The mysterious woman lay inside, completely unaware of the confusion surrounding her. Vegeta glanced anxiously at the door.

"I think that for the time being it would be wise for her to stay in this branch of the palace where she is easily accessible. We know nothing about her and frail as she may _seem_ I want to be perfectly certain that there is no possible threat brewing here." The Prince appeared lost in his own thoughts for a moment.

"Of course, sire."

"In the mean time, I want you to investigate her origin. Where does she come from? And more importantly, how did she get here without our knowing? She does have a pathetic ki level but not nearly low enough to be undetected," he was lecturing. She was vaguely familiar to him. The way he'd brushed her hair from her eyes earlier had been complete reflex, habit. "Oh, and Radditz, a slow death will await you if word of this reaches my father."

"Of course, sire," said Radditz with confusion in his eyes as he stared blankly into the now empty hall.  
_  
Why doesn't he want the King to know?_

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Listening to the men converse "quietly" in the hall, Bulma couldn't help but be confused. Her? A threat? To _what_? What was going on? What was this nonsense about not knowing who she was? She was his mate, dammit!

_Just as I thought earlier, this is_ insanity. _Complete_ insanity.

Bulma rubbed her eyes. There was an aching behind them that she knew came with over-resting. She could have been knocked out for hours. Uncertain, she glanced around for any indication of the time. The room was shaded in darkness.

Her body ached, she noticed after a few minutes. Bulma squeezed her eyes shut. The room was permeated with his smell, utterly saturated. Bulma sat up and wrapped her arms around herself.  
_  
Where_ are _you, Vegeta? _

Suddenly, there was the sound of an opening door. Bulma's heart began to flutter and beat more quickly in fear. It was dark. Who knew what sort of creature was lurking in the unknown shadows? She was beginning to despise her human senses—they always came up short when she needed them most. She could hear footsteps and masculine breathing.

"Vegeta...?" she whispered into the darkness.

"How do you _do_ that, onna?" came an irritated voice. He seemed a bit frazzled. Clearly she'd ruined the element of surprise.

"Do _what_?" She was immediately on the defensive. Her only response was a grunt.  
_  
Ah, back to caveman again. Where_ did _I go wrong? _thought Bulma with a grin in spite of herself.

There was a candle lit before Bulma knew what was going on and Vegeta's rich, dark brown eyes were staring at her intently. She inhaled quickly, surprised by his sudden proximity and her failure at sensing his nearness. Something was wrong if she couldn't sense him. On Earth, she'd always been able to gauge his whereabouts.

"You aren't _afraid_ are you, little one?" He grinned devilishly and Bulma could feel herself begin to relax. It was the same Vegeta, sadistic all the way. He did always get a kick out of scaring her. But there was something different about his eyes and demeanor. Vegeta though he may be, he was somehow different, altered.

She smiled coyly. "Always, Vegeta," she responded sarcastically, emphasizing his name in a possessive way. It was meant to be playful. This confused him. His eyebrows furrowed and his gaze hardened.

"Watch your tone. I am the Saiya-jin no Ouji. No one addresses me without the use of my formal title." His words were hard but his eyes softened just the least bit. Bulma gazed at his tail. The tip of it was lashing around playfully.  
_  
Well, at least there's_ one _way you can always tell how a Saiya-jin feels. Something is_ definitely _different._

Vegeta was frowning.

"I'm going to be direct," started Vegeta, "we don't know who you are. The head of my guard, Radditz, does not know how it is you arrived in the royal gardens without being detected, and—" he hesitated and gazed at her. Bulma found herself longing for the gold hues which had, until most recently, punctuated his eyes whenever he was around at her.

"You are unaware of why I possess a black mark of the Seal of the House of Vegeta-sei on my upper back," Bulma finished for him. It was obvious that this point held some strange, distraught emotion for him. She couldn't decide what it was, or even if she wanted to know.

Was he suffering from amnesia? Or was he just toying with her? Something about the altered cadence in his voice stopped her from moving closer.

"It would be wise for you to start speaking _now_, onna. I would hate to be forced to use methods of extraction which would mar your delicate beauty." It was a threat, and a damned serious one at that. Bulma looked at the Saiya-jin no Ouji and contemplated his unfamiliar stare. This was no idle threat.  
_  
You really don't remember?_

Bulma bit down on her lower lip. She had to sober up quickly. This Vegeta wasn't playing games. Either he was pretending not to know her or remember anything of their being mated, or he was suffering from sort of strange amnesia. Still, neither of these situations explained the altered reality surrounding her and the fact she was on a planet which _should_ have been destroyed close to three decades ago.

She examined him. After weeks of close contact with the Saiya-jin no Ouji and over a year of acquaintance, she was all too familiar with the subtle nuances of Vegeta's personality. The man in front of her was nothing like the one she knew. This was not _her_ Vegeta at all.

She thought about telling him the truth, but as the candle light reflected upon his chiseled face, a devious, cold-hearted expression appeared and all she could do was stumble. Who was this man?

"_Well?_" he demanded. His tail was still flicking back and forth anxiously. She was just another victim, a prey animal he was waiting to devour.

"I don't _know_." _I don't know _you. She fought the tunnel vision as it blotted away the room surrounding her, and she fought as her eyes shut, pulled down by the lead of all the strange thoughts surrounding her. But it wasn't enough. Bulma surrendered herself to the welcoming nothingness; an emotional pit of darkness filled with cold words and the warmth of Vegeta's embrace which seemed just out of reach.


	26. chapter twentyfive

Insert standard disclaimer here.  
**  
The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty-Five**

Vegeta stared at the woman for a long time.  
_  
Her coloration is so rare: blue hair, blue eyes, pale skin._

In the thousands of planets he'd purged in the name of the Saiya-jin Empire he could never remember encountering one with creatures similar to her. And there was something behind her black lashes, gentle blushes, and coy comments. His thoughts betrayed him. From the moment he'd laid eyes on her she'd seemed familiar. It had taken him completely aback.

He didn't know why, but he could remember touching her, holding her, burying himself inside of her until she screamed his name over and over again.

This trick, whatever it may be, was a damned good one. He disliked thinking the worst of such a frail but beautiful creature. Females like her were in short supply anywhere in the galaxy. Here was more than just a pretty face. It was the 'more' that had him worried.

She'd mentioned his name several times while tossing and turning in a fitful sleep and, despite it all, he couldn't make himself wake her. How did she know him? He _was_ one of the most powerful and well-known monarchs in the galaxy, but she'd said his name like she owned him. She'd spoken to him as an equal in a way a companion would. As the Saiya-jin no Ouji, he was always treated with condensation or a respect deeply rooted in fear of his insurmountable power—never with equality.

"Vegeta..." she mumbled it again, this time almost at the point of tears.

His thoughts ran everywhere. He didn't know what to think. _Had_ he met her before?

Vegeta ran his fingers through his coarse hair and sighed. He was the Saiya-jin no Ouji and the most powerful warrior on the planet, these fits of turmoil were definitely _not_ his forte. He tore his eyes away from her.  
_  
Who_ are _you, onna? Why do you have_ that _mark?_

He wanted to blow something up.

Bulma's eyebrows were knit together. She looked other-worldly as she laid defenselessly in his bed.

A light sweat covered every inch of Bulma's slender body. Her damp hair clung to her forehead and once again, without thought, Vegeta brushed the persistent locks from her face. The touch seemed to put her at rest momentarily and she smiled in her sleep.  
_  
Odd, _thought Vegeta. He sat down beside her on the bed and immediately Bulma began to sleep more evenly.  
_  
She reacts to my proximity?_

It was getting late. Still, for some unfathomable reason, he was opposed to waking her and sending her to the quarters he'd had arranged for her earlier that evening.

Vegeta was disgusted with himself. He stood and looked for the nearest chair.

"No, don't go," whispered the strange woman in a broken voice. He could tell she was dreaming but couldn't help but sense a duality in her voice. It wasn't just the man in her dreams she was addressing but him as well. He and the other were the same. He looked at her. She reached out blindly with one glistening arm. The candle light made her head, bare shoulders, and outstretched arm shimmer in the darkness.

He moved closer, taking her soft hand in his own calloused palm. She tugged him gently but with a sort of strength that only came with need. He grunted.  
_  
Rather direct, isn't she? _Vegeta thought in amusement. He couldn't sense any thought patterns from her that denoted alertness. After releasing her hand, he removed his heavy formal cape and the long-sleeved, restrictive shirt he'd been wearing at his Senate meetings all morning. How he hated the formality of politics. He slipped off his boots and climbed onto the bed beside her.

He laid down and crossed his hands behind his head. Well, this wasn't too bad. His senses were acute enough that he could blast her should she decide to do anything nefarious.

The Saiya-jin Prince considered pulling back the bedding. Assassination attempts aside, the woman was already covered completely in sweat and his nearness to her would only make it worse. His body temperature was several degrees higher than her own. She turned toward him and scooted closer.  
_  
To hell with it. Everything will change in the morning anyway, _he thought.

She'd go to her own quarters and he'd be sure to rise before she even knew he'd been there. He slipped under the covers and drew himself up beside her. He was startled as she inched toward him and wrapped her arms around his torso possessively. The flimsy under garments she wore did little to stop the majority of her skin from pressing up against him, and Vegeta hissed at the sudden contact. He lay there for a few moments, not knowing what to do, before deciding to wrap his free arm around her waist.

Her face was alarmingly close to his own. Her breathing had also calmed and she lay restfully beside him with a slight curve to her lips.

"Thank you," she whispered in her sleep, before inching forward and placing a gentle kiss upon his unsuspecting lips. Vegeta felt his entire body stiffen as all of his muscles contracted.  
_  
What the bloody hell—?_

No one broached his physical boundaries without his permission. Who the hell was she?

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma woke to find herself in an empty room—the same room she'd been in the previous night.  
_  
So much for all of this being a dream, _she thought in defeat.

Her dreams were persisting, even here. Vegeta was in full armor and going off, leaving her all alone. She was at the point of tears when he took her hand. It was reassuring in a way Bulma never could have imagined. She didn't remember anything after that except for the wave of peace that surrounded her. She slept extraordinarily soundly.

The room was even more saturated in Vegeta's scent than it had been the night before, she noticed as she got up and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Had Vegeta been there?  
_  
He couldn't have been. I would have known._

Beside the bed was a chair with a long black robe draped over it. Glancing around the room, Bulma assumed it must have been left there for her. The only clothes she had to her name at that point were her PJs anyway and those were currently MIA. She glanced around the room, finally setting her eyes on a door. She prayed it was a bathroom.

The befuddled Earthling sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed. She wanted to take it easy. Her equilibrium wasn't quite right. But after a few moments of regaining herself, Bulma plopped onto the carpeted floor and picked up the robe. It was made of a fine black velvet lined with red satin.  
_  
Vegeta's favorite colors, _she thought with a sigh. The colors of death and blood.

The carpet felt wonderfully plush beneath her feet as she walked over to the adjoining bathroom. It was easier to take in the decor from the middle of the room. Gothic, like everything else in the palace.

_These people really need to reconsider their death and torture motif._

But there was something about it—something to the dark themes, gold trim, and borders that added a sense of simplicity. It was magnificent, but sparse. It practically screamed Vegeta. And for the life of her, she couldn't find it in herself to hate it.  
_  
So this was all he was missing back on Earth._

She couldn't blame him for longing for his homeworld and this grandeur. The bathroom was no different as she padded across the large tiled room. The floor was black with a crimson mark of the House of Vegeta-sei in the center.  
_  
That must be their coat of arms, _she thought, thinking about the mark on her upper back.

The tub was black marble.  
_  
Kami, does everything in this place scream death and destruction or what?_

The whole palace seemed to be done in dark, foreboding colors. She turned the copper nozzle in the tub and was greeted by a gentle flow of warm water. Beside the bath was a glass bottle tinted brown that looked expensive and barely used. Her curiosity piqued, Bulma reached over and grabbed the smooth, cylindrical bottle, removing the glass ball cap.  
_  
Bath oils, _she thought pleasantly while indulging in the gentle aroma of the oil. It was a spice she couldn't quite put her finger on but it was wonderful nonetheless. She poured a rather generous amount in the tub of steaming water before replacing the cap and putting the bottle back where she'd found it.  
_  
Oh, to be clean again, _she thought as she let the water rinse away her sweat and puzzled, lingering thoughts.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

"Well?" the Saiya-jin no Ouji asked Radditz impatiently.

"We have no idea, sire. None of the systems we have encountered as of thus far have turned up with a species similar to hers," responded Radditz. The prince was beginning to look irked, an expression which always worried him.

"We have one of the most extensive data bases in the galaxy and you're telling me that you haven't even found _one_ clue that links her to any of those systems?" asked Vegeta in a skeptical, menacing voice. His left eyebrow was beginning to twitch.

"That is correct, sire. Nothing concrete." Radditz stared down at the other man without any hint of emotion on his face.

"That is completely unacceptable. You better find something, and soon, or you may be forced to consider what being flash fried feels like," warned Vegeta as he turned and left the room. He needed to approach the onna again and ask her directly. _Hopefully_ she could give him a straight answer this time without fainting. As for now, there were more pressing matters at hand.


	27. chapter twentysix

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty-Six**

Bulma didn't know how long she'd been soaking in the tub, but as she examined her prune-like fingers and toes she figured she'd indulged for long enough. Easing her way out of the now lukewarm water, she reached for Vegeta's robe that was resting on the nearby counter. The smooth material was soft against Bulma's sensitive skin as she let it slide across the surface of her exposed body. She could get used to this.

She reached her hand into the scented water and pulled the plug, allowing the water to escape. The tile floor was cold and she hissed as she walked across it and back onto the thick, less obtrusive, carpet.

It was still dark in the room even though Bulma knew it must have been at least 9 o'clock in the morning. The only light provided at all came from the open bathroom door and the window just beyond. There was a tall drapery that Bulma assumed covered a window off to the right and a gold drawstring hanging at its side. Feeling weary of the darkness, Bulma approached the tasseled rope and pulled on it. Immediately the drapery pulled to the side, buckling in its middle to expose two large, floor length windows that opened onto a balcony. The sky on this vivacious planet was still, to Bulma, extraordinary. The sun was relatively low on the horizon and barely peaked its head over the mountains that were off in the distance.

The balcony, she realized as she opened the doors and walked outside, was at least 30 feet above what she assumed to be ground level. The steep drop itself led to rough looking rocks and a lake that extended as far as her eyes could see. Sunlight reflected off its smooth surface, leaving shimmering diamonds of light extending for miles. It was lovely. It was like home.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The Council Room was unbearably stuffy, and the Nobles were only contributing to the suffocating atmosphere. Not one of them had any idea how complicated it was to run an empire. All of them had been high-born and handed over their positions as if it were their right. He on the other hand, as the Saiya-jin Heir, would have to eradicate his father and all his guards before ever succeeding to the thrown of Vegeta-sei. Half the other men in the room were the result of incestuous family relations—an unfortunate side effect of the struggle to keep their bloodlines 'pure'. The flaws of their erroneous breeding habits were expressed most clearly in their complete and utter lack of intellect. There was only one purifying factor in the House of Vegeta-sei and that was death.

"These politics have left us tip-toeing in a political minefield for almost thirty years now. War, at this point is inevitable, gentlemen. The Saiya-jin Empire is one of the strongest in the galaxy. The Cold family has lost interest in us so we no longer need fear their conflicting power." The King cringed curiously at the mention of the Ice-jin Empire. It was a bare twitch of his brow, but Vegeta, ever vigilant, wondered at it. "We need to smash these people like the insects they are before other Associate Worlds decide to rebel." To anyone with the intellect of an ant it would appear that the discussion was closed. Sadly, no men of such caliber sat at this particular table.

"But, sire, if I were only given troops, I could destroy…" continued the presumptuous Saiya-jin Noble seated to the left of the King.

"Do shut your mouth, Nappa, before you give reason for me to do it for you," said Vegeta before the Noble had the opportunity to make some other ridiculous comment that would only lead to further self-incrimination. Despite the trouble he was having quenching his Saiya-jin pride, Nappa decided it was better to be quiet and live to see another day.

The King sat at the head of the table, back rigid, for some time. He was formally attired, as were all the other Senate members. Vegeta cringed at the sight of the hideously flashy rock of a pendant the King wore around his neck as the symbol of his supremacy and rule. If there was one thing Vegeta didn't look forward to about becoming King, it was being weighted down by that ghastly, ancient stone that was nearly two millennia old.

_Hideous decoration, _thought Vegeta, letting his mind wander. The banter going on in the room didn't interest him in the least.

_These men are an insult to the Saiya-jin race._

All of them should have been destroyed centuries ago. There was no use in maintaining this shell of an aristocracy and democratic political system when they all knew that formidable ki and strategy were the real rulers here. These men, with the exception of Nappa who had served several years in the Saiya-jin military, held little ki ability to their name other than flying. To Vegeta, these men were expendable, defenseless rodents just waiting to be put to the slaughter. _He_ was the one they feared. _He_ was the one who would one day rule with an iron fist. _He_ was the Saiya-jin of legend and none of them could contest _his_ awesome power.

Vegeta absently clenched and released his gloved hand as a form of amusement. He had had enough.

"Enough, you fools. _Enough,_" he finally growled, forcefully pushing back his seat and standing. "You _will_ respect the decision of the King and stop this ridiculous quarreling immediately." There was complete silence as all the men around the room gazed up at the vexed Saiya-jin no Ouji, some in fear, others in contempt. His father glanced at him coolly.

"This meeting," began his father, "is adjourned." All the Senators glanced at each other in confusion. No one contested the opinion of the King _and_ the Heir and lived to speak of it. All rose, gathered what papers they had scattered before them, and hurriedly exited the conference room.

"You shouldn't have done that, brat," the King addressed the younger Saiya-jin. "Now there will be talk of the monarchy overthrowing the Senate all over Vegeta-sei. Not very wise considering the war we are about to begin." His voice was still cool but Vegeta could sense the ill-concealed malice in the King's words. His sire's anger was just waiting to explode on him in a flurry of ki energy. He had undermined the King, made him appear weak.

"So, let them talk. We have been the rightful rulers of Vegeta-sei for millennia. Let them say what they wish, for if they create a quarrel with the House of Vegeta-sei it will only bring death and destruction upon their _own_." He was right in his own way. It was for this reason that the House of Vegeta-sei had been in power for so long. No one dared disturb a family that could completely destroy everything that mattered to them.

The King's eyes narrowed. "Do not take your power for granted, brat. I was once called the Foreseen One too and do not doubt that the same miserable fate that befell me will also befall you. Do not let _your_ ambition get ahead of you." It was a slap in the face. Vegeta hated being reminded of his father's failure to fulfill the prophecy and the dishonor and pressure it brought upon himself.

_Mark my words, Father, someday I will revel in your suffering, _thought Vegeta after the King left. The man was intolerable but Vegeta refused to be associated with his father's weakness. He _would_ become the Legendary. He could feel it inside him just as surely as he could feel his own steady heart beat.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Bulma was startled out of her peaceful reverie by a loud knock at the door. Not wanting to leave the unknown visitor waiting for terribly long, she hastened into the room and to the large door. After adjusting the robe that was her only clothing, Bulma cracked the door open and peered into the dim hallway.

"Good afternoon, m'lady," greeted the large Saiya-jin before her. It was the one from the lake. Wasn't his name Radditz?

"Good afternoon, Radditz," she responded calmly. Though she no longer feared him the way she had at the lake, he was still a large and formidable soldier who could easily overpower her. There was a moment of awkward silence.

"May I enter the room, m'lady?" he asked in an almost irritated, but respectful tone after shifting his weight from one leg to the other in an uncomfortable way.

"Yes, of course." Bulma mentally slapped herself for her lack of courtesy.

"I've been asked by Prince Vegeta to escort you to your new chambers, m'lady," he said in a monotone.

"But I thought…" She was confused, accustomed to staying in her mate's quarters. Radditz gave her a questioning gaze. Of course, she reminded herself, there was no way he could have any idea about her connection to the Saiya-jin no Ouji, if it even existed in this warped dimension. At this point she was beginning to doubt her sanity. No one seemed to be aware of their past histories except for Bulma, and her only link to this connection was the lone mark burnt between her shoulder blades.

"These are the _Prince's_ quarters, m'lady." He must have mistaken her meaning. It was for the better she supposed. The less people knew of her connection, the less people thought her mad.

"Yes…. And please, don't call me 'm'lady'. My name is Bulma and I won't be offended if you refrain from using any sort of formal title," she said with little passion in her voice.

"Of course, Lady Bulma," replied the burly Saiya-jin. Bulma shook her head, but decided to let it slide. She wasn't in the mood to explain herself again, especially to a Saiya-jin. Bulma walked to the chair beside the bed and grabbed her undergarments. Apparently the rest of her PJs were _still_ MIA.

"Alright," she sighed, "I'm ready to go." She gave the room one last look, trying to burn the feel and scent of it into her brain, and then, without glancing behind her, followed Radditz out of the comfort of her mate's room.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Vegeta entered his quarters. He was angry and looking for some solace. It was asinine that his father would be so angered by his interjection. He was on edge and had been for the past week. As usual, the arrival of the _Khon'daia na_ had thrown his body into a biological storm as it dealt with greater energies and more complex emotional states. All that had been aggravated even further when the onna arrived. He couldn't get his mind off of her.

He paced toward the bed. It was still unmade from earlier that morning. She must have only just recently left the room because the maids hadn't come yet. He could smell her everywhere. That delicate, feminine fragrance that was so new to him, but so familiar at the same time. He was utterly enveloped in it when he'd risen earlier that morning. He'd hoped not to have to take a shower before he went to his council meeting but the fragrance was so strong that he'd opted to take one nonetheless. The last thing he needed was for the Senators to catch the smell of a woman on him—led alone an alien one at that.

He quickly removed his cape and sat on the now empty bed. It seemed strangely lonely without her in it, and for a moment he pondered how he could possibly think such an idiotic thing.

An image of the woman lying naked on black sheets, her hair splayed haphazardly around her, filled Vegeta's vision. How could it feel so real?

Hurriedly, Vegeta removed his shirt and walked into the bathroom. He needed another shower. A cold one. It would ease his aching head and muscles and hopefully wash away his lingering thoughts.

Swiftly removing the rest of his clothes, Vegeta stepped into the shower, turning the cold water faucet. The frigid water struck his body like a thousand icicles but he was used to it by now. He turned his back to the water and this time, hissed. The water did always sting when it hit the newly burnt mark…


	28. chapter twentyseven

Insert standard disclaimer here.  
**  
The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty-Seven  
**  
The room that had been arranged for Bulma was welcoming and luxurious. Decorated in white an gold and contrasted entirely with the darkness of her mate's quarters. There was an antique gold floral pattern to the wallpaper and the sheer white drapes that faced incredibly tall windows. The bed was a canopy and had an embroidered white and gold comforter with gold trimming. The bathroom was also done in white and a small vanity done up in gold was adjacent to it.

_How could a room like this exist at all among the darkness of the rest of the palace?_Bulma asked herself. She liked the change and slowly went around touching all of the items, including the small grooming tools set down on her vanity.

"I take it the room is to your liking, Lady Bulma?" asked Radditz, suppressing laughter at her dramatic reaction to the splendor of the room.

"Yes, of course." She sat down on the bed as she mumbled the reply and laid down. It was very soft, almost too soft, if that was possible. It was everything out of a fairy tale dream, but there was something missing and that something, or rather someone, was Vegeta. She couldn't help but frown despite herself.  
_  
There's got to be some sort of explanation for this. I'll make him remember_.

She bit down on her lower lip and squeezed her eyes shut.

"Is everything alright, Lady Bulma?" asked Radditz again, standing uncomfortably. He was trying not to fidget, apparently not used to displays of emotion.

"Of course, of course." She waved her hand to reassure him. "The room is wonderful, how could I not be alright?" She tried to make him believe she was perfectly fine but failed miserably.

"Ah, but you still haven't seen _all_ of the room, have you?" Radditz asked with a grin.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The mark had appeared a few days earlier, completely out of the blue. It was just after dawn and Vegeta was practicing some swordplay in the courtyard when he had suddenly been overcome by a, literally, searing sort of pain between his shoulder blades. The pain was so intense he'd dropped the sword and fallen onto his knees, bracing his head between his hands. It wasn't just his back that was being invaded—it was his mind as well. There was an alien presence trying to force its way into his consciousness and the pain was crippling. No matter how many mental walls he kept putting up or how quickly, within an instant, all were torn down.

The searing pain between his shoulder blades crescendoed and he became overwhelmed, forced to drop all of his mental barriers. There was a light, a white, pure light that had completely enveloped his line of vision before it all faded to black.

He couldn't help but shudder as he remembered it.

_What is wrong with me, first the appearance of this dreaded mark and now my weakness for an onna?  
_  
He wasn't sure how, but he knew that somehow the two were related and it worried him. The last thing he needed to worry about with the impending war was a woman who would cause him unwanted distraction.

But he did want her. Spending the previous evening wrapped in her bare arms and smashed against her nearly naked body had assured him of that. It had been years since a female of any species could get under his skin like that. And, damn it all, he liked it.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

"We still can't find an existing planet with her species, sir," reported one of the Saiya-jin communications officers. "We've searched our entire data bases and those of our Associate Planets. Nothing. Not a trace." The officer wouldn't say it, but Radditz could tell what he was thinking. All of them were thinking the same thing. _Does this have to do with the war with Dokar-sei?_ Of course, none of them knew of the mark this mysterious onna possessed nor why they were forbidden to tell the King without Vegeta's permission. All of them were worried.  
_  
She's too enticing, _thought Radditz, captured in his own thoughts. _She'll be the undoing of the empire if Vegeta allows her too close.  
_  
He already _had_ though. And that was the problem. The scent of her was all over the Prince, barely stifled by the soap he'd tried to use to cover it up. Not that Radditz could really blame him. _Bulma_ was very beautiful. The type of beautiful that made even the prudest male look twice. She was striking and sharp in an alien way. And she was a handful. Yes, he would have to keep a close eye on Vegeta and himself for that matter. She was beguiling and Radditz was determined not to let himself fall victim to her charms.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

The closet was, wow... Bulma's thoughts trailed off. If one thing was for certain, Radditz _did_ know how to cheer her up. She liked him, she decided after a few moments of contemplation. Despite his Saiya-jin aloofness and intimidating stature he was quite the charmer and _very_ attractive. Not that any other Saiya-jin men could really ever hold a candle to Vegeta, but they were _all_ quite attractive in their own devilish sort of way. She smiled.

_My goodness, gold silk and crimson. Gorgeous, _thought Bulma as she pulled out another gloriously expensive, hand-made gown from her enormous walk-in closet.

"It was my mother's," came a voice from behind Bulma, causing her to jump and cover in goose bumps all at the same time.

"Vegeta no Ouji," started Bulma respectfully, "I didn't see you there," she responded. She still couldn't figure out why she was going along with the whole amnesia thing and _respect_ for goodness sake, but if that's what it took to win him back, it was a sacrifice she was willing to make. The Saiya-jin no Ouji smiled.

His face looked puzzled. Really, it was too cute, noted Bulma as she studied the man leaning on the door frame before her.

"So all of these were your mother's?" questioned Bulma when she finally found her voice. Thankfully, it wasn't shaky in the least.

"Yes, she was a woman of very good taste, very _rich_ taste. Or so I've been told," stated the Prince rather coolly.

_He never knew his mother..._

"She died when I was very young," he added after noticing the question reflected in Bulma's eyes. It seemed that was as much as he would say.

"So are you finding your new quarters to be acceptable?" questioned the Saiya-jin no Ouji. It was nearly rhetorical.

"Yes, yes. Why wouldn't I Vegeta?" asked Bulma with a sigh, "...no Ouji," she added after seeing the strange look on his face.

"I apologize for keeping you on such a leash but you must understand that you, little one, are a great liability to me. If you have _anything_ to do with Dokar-sei..." He trailed off. "Never mind that, you know the saying: 'Keep your friends close...'"

"And your enemies closer," finished Bulma with a defeated look on her face.

_What the hell is Dokar-sei? And what is_ my _connection to it? _thought Bulma in more confusion.

Vegeta moved away from the door and approached Bulma. She suddenly became painfully aware of the fact that she was only wearing the robe from earlier and that her hair lay strewn in a curly mess about her shoulders. Vegeta's eyes were hard as he reached out a hand and gently stroked her slightly rouged cheek.

"Be sure you've decided where your loyalties lie, little one, before the war has begun. Saiya-jins are not known for their mercy and I would hate to see such perfection desecrated." It was another warning and Bulma still didn't know what was going on. She reached her own hand up and placed it over Vegeta's. As if waking from a trance, he hastily removed his hand from her face. "Pray I find no treachery in you, onna. Pray for it." And he turned to leave so quickly, Bulma had no idea where her thoughts should begin or end.

"Oh, and onna," came the Prince's voice from somewhere out in her room, "do wear something more appropriate tonight for dinner. I'm afraid my robe is quite unacceptable." The humor in his voice was apparent and Bulma couldn't help but blush.

His _robe. No wonder he kept giving me such a strange expression._

At least that explained why she felt so comfortable in it. But _dinner_. She had no idea what to wear to that. She had no idea _why_ she was going or why Vegeta would invite her. Especially considering the fact that she was his "little secret." Nevermind that, she had some questions to ask Radditz about this Dokar-sei.


	29. chapter twentyeight

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty-Eight**

"It's not your fault that she's suddenly arrived this way, Vegeta no Ouji," came the voice of a figure shadowed beside the Saiya-jin no Ouji's window. Passive, and almost soothing, the remark had been more of a reflection than a comment of censure.

Vegeta grunted. It didn't matter if it wasn't his fault. Having an _Earthling_ around was the last thing he wanted. He would play the fool for as long as possible, but soon everyone would know about Chikyuu and what had happened there. It was only a matter of time.

"Don't dwell on it, Vegeta no Ouji. She is ignorant—"

"I know she is," Vegeta replied tersely, cutting off the shadowed warrior. "That doesn't make her any less dangerous." Silence resumed and the two gazed out at the red sky as it purpled with the dying sunlight.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

"Well, this is as good as it gets," murmured Bulma as she gazed at her reflection in the mirror. After much deliberation, she'd decided upon a simple black gown of a more modest design. She could still be sexy without flaunting her goods and looking like a tramp. She wasn't _quite_ at the point of desperation.

As the light from her window began to fade away, the pain between her shoulder blades grew more intense. She was glad she'd decided upon the modest gown. Exposing the glowing mark seemed like a bad idea on Vegeta-sei. The pain was nagging. Instead of a gentle throb it began to pulse and burn. She may not have been on Earth and the _Khon'daia na_ may not have still been in effect, but its residue still slithered slowly through her veins, saturating her blood with electric heat, an energy completely alien to her own: Vegeta's.

"Lady Bulma?" Radditz sounded anxious. Apparently there was some weight on the night's outcome and for a moment Bulma felt a ping of trepidation. Approaching the door, Bulma turned and took one more glance at the setting sun. She was ready.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Sitting at the table and strumming his fingers, Vegeta waited for Bulma to arrive. It was clear that she had no connection with the war at this point. Usually spies gave in under his power almost immediately and although he couldn't find a clear way to enter her mind, her aura was pure. Yet the answer to her untimely arrival was alluding even the wisest of his counselors and the mark they shared terrified him in a way he never thought possible. Uncertainty was dangerous at this point. One slip and Freeza would start a full out war. The last thing he needed was a war with two powerful empires. Vegeta-sei was strong, but with a meager population of 250 million, its forces could only be spread so thin.

"Vegeta no Ouji, Lady Bulma has arrived," came Radditz's muffled voice through the door.

"Enter." The word was uttered with authority as Vegeta quickly rose from his seat and straightened out his rumpled clothing. The figure standing by the window let out a sigh and Bulma quickly entered.

"Vegeta no Ouji," addressed Bulma formally with a slight bow that seemed customary when in the presence of Saiya-jin royalty.

"Good evening, onna. I'm glad to see you've finally acquired more... appropriate attire," greeted Vegeta. The sarcasm in his voice was accentuated by a sloppy smirk.

"Ditto," replied Bulma with her head high. There was no way she was letting him get the best of her, even if she was obligated to be painfully respectful. Vegeta's brows furrowed momentarily, a reaction characteristic of the new personality he'd taken on since her stay on Vegeta-sei.

_Clever, onna, clever._

Vegeta grinned in spite of himself. Something about her made the open impertinence bearable and challenging rather than insubordinate. But the smile was gone as quickly as it had come leaving, Bulma curious and apprehensive. The presence of another figure in the room drew her attention. She'd sensed it the second she'd entered the confined quarters. But whether that presence was friend or foe was yet to be determined.

"Friend, I do hope," came a voice from the darkness as a set of gold eyes flashed for a second and slowly faded back into shadow. The creature was clearly male and his voice was accented in a way she found vaguely familiar, nearly sensuous. Was there anything on the planet that wasn't? Having people read her mind was beginning to give her the creeps.

"Zarbon, how kind of you to make your presence known," remarked Vegeta tightly. Apparently he hadn't made the right decision somewhere along the line and the Saiya-jin prince was less than enthused.

_Zarbon..._

Using every technique Vegeta had previously taught her, Bulma concealed her thoughts. The last time she'd seen the green reptile had been before Namek was destroyed. She tried not to stare into the shadows with concern. Zarbon was here? Was he an _ally_?

"No, I knew he was there," commented Bulma in the creature's defense. She didn't want either of the men to pick up on her revelation. "I sensed another when I first entered the room."

"Really? How observant," the prince mocked. She'd forgotten that everyone here had that power; hers was nothing extraordinary on a planet where the indigenous life could hack its way into her brain if she wasn't careful. "Why don't you have a seat?"

_Do you_ always _have to be in control, Vegeta? _thought Bulma with irritation. Nothing in the universe vexed her more than muscle-bound, Saiya-jin men treating her like she had the I.Q. of a monkey. _Saiya-jins treating _me_ like a monkey. Ha._ At least she could still make jokes.

"Now that we're all here, I believe there are a few issues we need to discuss, several of them relevant to your safety here on Vegeta-sei." Vegeta paused. "I don't know how you got here, onna. Nor do I know the intent of this violation of exile arranged in our treaty with Chikyuu nearly 30 years ago, but it's my duty to inform you that the planet you know as _Earth_ no longer exists." He was direct, some could even say horribly blunt.

"I'm sorry, I must have misunderstood. What did you just say, Vegeta?" Bulma was at a loss for words, he couldn't have said... she couldn't have heard...

"Your planet no longer exists. A Saiya-jin infant, Kakkarot, was sent to Earth almost 30 years ago to purge it of all its life forms." He paused, the look on Bulma's face was hard, unfeeling, and made him damned uncomfortable. "Onna, if, for just _one_ minute you could stop glaring at me, maybe I could finish explaining to you what happened."

_Not that I know_ why _I feel I have to explain myself to an onna._

"There is a prophecy that dates back a thousand years of a Saiya-jin who will become the Legendary and Ascend to a level of power so remarkable that no being in the universe will be able to defeat him." The pedantic tone he was taking on was beginning to bore Bulma. She already _knew_ the story. Vegeta was obsessed with it for Kami's sake. Why was he bringing it up now? The Saiya-jin no Ouji paused, realizing that Bulma was not paying attention.

"I'm sorry, please continue." Bulma didn't think that telling him she already knew the story would be a good idea, especially if they thought she was a spy. After all, only Saiya-jins were supposed to know the _full_ story of the original Super Saiya-jin. Vegeta grunted.

"What most Saiya-jins _don't_ know is that the next Legendary is, according to recently found ancient manuscripts, supposed to have ties to a small planet called Earth. As I'm sure you're already aware, the term "Earth" is seldom, well, practically never used in everyday language here. It wasn't until right before Chikyuu's destruction, when Capsule Corporation began to develop advanced technologies, particularly one of encapsulation, that Chikyuu even became interesting to the Empire at all."

_So this is why Vegeta wanted to kill Goku so badly. He fulfilled the prophecy in a way Vegeta never could—never wanted to._

Vegeta's tail began to whip back and forth and his eyes showed a hint of gold. Something had him flustered but he kept going nonetheless. "So you see, onna, being that you are the only _Earthling_ we know to be alive, you are extremely important to us. Somehow you are connected to the fulfillment of the prophecy. Without you, on the brink of war with two great empires, the Saiya-jins have no hope of survival." His face was grim but matter of fact and his eyes glowed like fire as he gazed upon her porcelain face. Bulma glanced at his tail as it slowly lashed back and forth. Seeing it unraveled on Vegeta-sei and in the presence of another warrior was disconcerting.

_So how was Earth..._

"Destroyed?" Vegeta smiled a little and then turned away. She was letting down her mental barriers again. Gaining entrance into her mind was exceptionally easy when she was distressed. "It was a casualty of Freeza's obsession with power. After becoming aware of the prophecy he wanted to be sure that Kakkarot was not going to become the Legendary."

_Nor any other Saiya-jin, _thought Bulma.

"Under his command, the Earth was destroyed." Before Bulma could say anything, Vegeta stood up and walked to the window opposite Zarbon. It was clear he hadn't told the entire story, but Bulma temporarily let it go.

_Sooner or later…_

"Bulma." It was Zarbon's voice. As the darkness faded away from his shadowed form Bulma was taken aback as she was met by a pair of shimmering gold eyes.

"You really need to practice putting up your mental barriers more. Without them, on this planet, you'll be assassinated within the week," said Zarbon from the shadows.

"Um, thanks. I guess," Bulma managed to choke out in her state of shock. She was on mental overload and the last thing she needed to deal with was feeling even more threatened. So far every single one of the strange entities she'd met had threatened to kill her and that was _definitely_ not something she was looking forward to experiencing again.

"You're welcome." The shadow that had once blanketed the rest of the alien's features began to slither away as he approached her. Although accustomed to being surrounded by creatures of a race other than her own, Bulma couldn't help but be surprised at Zarbon's appearance. Fine green hair and pale bluish green skin gave away his reptilian origins but his eyes possessed a wit and strength she had seldom seen in any other humanoid. He was dense and heavily muscled but pulled it off in a graceful way, unlike the Saiya-jins who always seemed a bit savage in appearance.

Bulma smiled. Although Zarbon was brutishly strong and, she was certain, a merciless murderer, there was something about him she knew she could trust in this dimension. He would defend Vegeta to the death, and as far as she could tell, protect her as well. The fact that he had a face that looked like it was crafted by Kami himself had nothing to do with her ease, of course. She'd already witnessed his transformed state.

"Well, now that we're all getting _along_," started Vegeta as he made his way back over to the two of them, "I believe it's time for dinner."

Zarbon's eyes flickered for a moment after the Saiya-jin no Ouji spoke. And for a moment she could tell that something had been exchanged silently between the two. As the awkward silence drew on for a few seconds, Bulma's mind started to wander back to Earth. She released her breath in a sigh, only then realizing how long she'd been holding it. Sometime over the past few minutes she'd started trembling as well. Her whole body felt limp and heavy.

"Actually, Vegeta," said Bulma, standing up, with effort, from the position in her chair, "I think I need some rest. I'm beginning to feel rather…" Before Bulma could finish the sentence she was collapsing to the floor. Zarbon, the nearest to her, managed to catch her before she had completely fallen and in the process let down the ki shield he'd been surrounding himself with to prevent any mental intrusions.

"Ye gods, Vegeta, the gravity!" sounded the warrior in near panic as he put up a strong ki shield around himself and the fragile Chikyuu-jin in his arms. No wonder she'd fainted, the palace gravity had increased nearly 300 percent within the course of their discussion. Bulma's heart simply didn't have the strength to pump enough blood up to her brain with that much resistance.

In less than a second, Vegeta was down the hall and operating the atmosphere control panel, lowering the gravity back down to the 1g that Bulma was accustomed to.

_So,_ thought Zarbon as he stared at the fragile woman in his arms and briefly ran and scaled finger over her cheek, _it has begun already._


	30. chapter twentynine

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty-Nine**

"I don't know what _idiot_ thought that lowering the gravity field would be acceptable, but when I find him he will learn to never make such a mistake again!" fumed Vegeta. "If this _ever_ happens again you and the rest of your line will be wiped off the face of Vegeta-sei. Do you get me?" The Saiya-jin no Ouji's body began to glow faintly and Radditz couldn't help but cringe as the feisty young Saiya-jin burned him slightly with his ki.

"Yes, sire." Radditz stood at attention and tried to ignore the Prince's proximity to him as well as the searing pain of his aura. He really had no idea what had happened and it certainly wasn't his fault that the gravity machine failed, but in situations like these, when the Prince was all fired up, sometimes the only way to survive was to get up and shut up.

"Good." With a final ki flare, the Saiya-jin Prince left for his quarters.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Having placed the young Chikyuu-jin in her bed, Zarbon stared down at her sleeping features. She was, besides certain other member of his own race, one of the fairest creatures he had ever seen. And, in all honesty, he was surprised at how well she'd taken the news of her planet's destruction. Something wasn't right with her.

_Where are you really from, little one?_

Zarbon's features relaxed as he watched her stir and roll onto her side. She was still wearing the black gown from earlier that evening. More "appropriate" attire, as Vegeta had put it. Zarbon didn't even want to fathom the origins of that comment. Vegeta was definitely going to need a talking to about his relations with this strange creature who…

_Ye gods, don't tell me… _The alien's thoughts became a muddled mess as he carefully exposed a greater portion of Bulma's back. While the sleeping woman was turning, the black material of the gown had disheveled, exposing a tiny sliver of black scarring.

_Oh, Vegeta… what have you done?_

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

_'Please, don't go, Vegeta,_ please_…' she pleaded, begged, would have gotten on her knees if she'd thought it would help change the Saiya-jin's mind._

_'You know I cannot. The fates beckon me.' The compassionate look he gave her was one of understanding but of strength as well. There was nothing she could do. 'He's destroyed my home once before. He will not do it again. I will crush him. For the future of Vegeta-sei, for my family, for you…' His voice trailed off._

_'Leave me,' he whispered softly._

_'I won't.' Bulma looked out the window, staring at the red sky turned dark crimson. It was as if all the bloodshed had caused the planet itself to cry tears of Saiya-jin blood._

_'Go,_ now_!' The eyes greeting her were shimmering gold._

_'I'm leaving, Vegeta,' Bulma paused and then added, `You know how much I love you, just_ please_, try not to leave your son fatherless.'_

Bulma woke from her dream. Drenched in sweat and trembling slightly. It was difficult for her to determine her location in the dim light of the room. It had been days since she'd had that nightmare and the repetition of that scenario shook her now more than it ever had before. Whether the reason for her reaction was her sudden arrival on Vegeta-sei, meeting Zarbon for the second time, being informed of the Earth's destruction, or the fact that she'd spoken of her son, she had no idea.

"Nightmare?" Zarbon's voice pierced the darkness of the bed chamber, startling her. Bulma gave him a short, nervous smile.

"Yes, I'm afraid my dreams have been littered with them lately." Bulma began to rub her temples in an attempt to ease her fledgling headache.

"Mates usually do have nightmares about the deaths of their partners on the brink of war. It's not uncommon." The alien's voice turned menacing.

"How did you—"

"Who are you?" questioned the warrior as he eased his scaled hand around Bulma's throat. "Who _are_ you?" The grip tightened slightly when she failed to answer. After a few moments, his golden eyes became more hostile and he released her throat with some force, throwing her head to the side.

_Shit, Vegeta never told him? No, of course he wouldn't._

Bulma's thoughts became desperate. What should she say? As far as she knew, Vegeta was even oblivious to the origin of his own marked back.

_When in doubt, go with honesty, I guess._

"I'm Bulma Briefs, President of the Capsule Corporation, and until two days ago, I was living on Earth."

"That's impossible," spat the alien at her response. "Earth was destroyed years ago. The treaty with Capsule Corp was made void under Freeza's rule. You should be dead along with the rest of your family."

"_Listen_ to me," started Bulma with strength and authority. All those years dealing with condescending bureaucrats had finally paid off. "That is the truth. One minute I was on Earth and the next, in the forest being threatened by Radditz." Bulma sat straight up, every bone in her body demanded that Zarbon believe what she was saying.

Sensing no dishonesty in her aura, Zarbon relaxed only the slightest.

"Alright," Zarbon began, "but I want to know the _whole_ story from the beginning. And if you omit _anything,_ I'll know," he threatened.

"Okay then. In the universe, reality, planet, whatever you want to call it, that I came from, Vegeta-sei no longer exists…"

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

"My sources tell me that you have visitor on Vegeta-sei." The words seemed to slither from the small speaker beneath the comm unit's screen. "I would hate to think that you were withholding information from me, your Highness. That would be, shall we say, unfortunate." The Ice-jin sneered. Nothing in the universe irritated him more than a bunch of Saiya-jin monkeys who thought that one day their "savior" would come. The Legendary was, now, nothing more than a myth. The man on the screen had made sure of that.

"I know nothing of any 'visitor', Lord Freeza," responded the Saiya-jin King. He didn't like where the conversation was going. The last thing he wanted was Freeza's attention during the war with Dokar-sei.

"Perhaps you should ask your son. Oh, and Vegeta, I want this problem dealt with immediately. I would hate to have to _personally_ intervene."

The King stared at the blank screen.

_Ask my son, eh? Well, Vegeta, I hope you know what you're doing, because when this is all over with you're going to be begging me to kill you._

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

"We need to talk." The Saiya-jin no Ouji wasn't even to his chamber door before Zarbon confronted him.

"Not now, Zarbon," replied the Prince in irritation. "And I've told you. Do _not_ address me so informally when we're not alone. I've already had to deal with enough rumors. Whatever it is, it can wait." As he recommenced moving toward the door he was stopped by a firm grip on his right arm.

"I _know_ about you and the girl." Zarbon's tight words seemed to resound in the hallway.

"You will remove your hand from my arm, Zarbon, or lose use of it for the remainder of your pathetic life." Vegeta was beyond anger. How dare Zarbon presume to understand anything that had happened over the past few days when Vegeta himself didn't understand any of it.

"When did the mark appear, Vegeta?" demanded the alien.

"Get back in my quarters or I swear, trainer or not, I will kill you where you stand." Vegeta growled as he shoved Zarbon into his chambers.

"Ye, gods, Vegeta. How in Kami's name could you be so careless? Radditz knows? Don't you understand that the entirety of the Saiya-jin Empire is at stake here. You took a _mate?_" Zarbon tried to keep his voice down as to prevent Bulma from completely overhearing their conversation.

"What do you think I am, a _complete_ idiot? Mind who you're speaking to Zarbon or those words will be your last." This was no bluff. Defensive, angered, and Saiya-jin, Vegeta's ki had started to rise and his body glowed an alarming shade of red.

"Vegeta, I think there's something you need to know. That woman, Bulma, she isn't from this world, she isn't even from this _dimension._"

"That's impossible, Zarbon." It was amazing how Saiya-jins could still find a way to sound like they were going to murder someone even when speaking softly. A small part of Zarbon couldn't help feeling amused. Here they were discussing the future, or lack there of, of Vegeta-sei and the two warriors were more concerned about waking the sleeping woman in the next room.

"I think you need to talk to her. And soon. Whether you're willing to accept it or not, Vegeta, she is your _mate._" Zarbon could barely even believe he'd said those words. Never in a thousand years did he think the words "Vegeta" and "mate" would go in the same sentence together. "And she _is_ from another world. I _know_ you can sense it. The way she looks at you alone shows her strange attachment to you. There's no way that could have developed so suddenly without some inexplicable history."

Vegeta glanced at the door to his bed chamber and mused about how somehow Zarbon had known to bring her there instead of to her own chambers. Although slightly sickened by the idea of it all, Vegeta was certain that what Zarbon had said was true. Bulma was not from his dimension, and, worst of it, they were irrevocably mated.

_It would explain the strange visions I've been having to an extent._

Vegeta was at a loss. Barely two days had gone by and already his _mate's_ life was at stake. The gravity malfunction had _not_ been an accident. If someone on Vegeta-sei already knew, then it wouldn't be long before Freeza found out as well.

_If he doesn't already…_

"We need to think of something soon, Vegeta. Or Freeza will find out and I'm really not looking forward to seeing what he'll do about the prophecy _this_ time."

"I know. For now let us hope my father hasn't found out. And if he has, well then, Vegeta-sei just might find itself with a new King decades before anyone expected." Vegeta began to move toward his bed chamber door.

"Oh, and Zarbon," said Vegeta as he turned back to the other warrior, "I want you to find Radditz and have him stand guard outside my chambers. He isn't my first choice, but you're too valuable to stand around playing babysitter and he's one of the only other people who knows about the woman's appearance. In the mean time, I'd feel much more comfortable if you were investigating the nature of the equipment _malfunction_ from earlier. I would really love to see the severed head of whoever is responsible within the next 24 hours." With that final remark, Vegeta turned back to his bedroom doors and entered, his tail lashing wildly behind him as he went.

_May Kami have mercy on us all, _thought Zarbon.


	31. chapter thirty

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirty**

"Don't even _try_ to pretend you're sleeping, onna. Your heart is beating far too quickly for that." Vegeta's voice was one of censure as he approached her form on the bed.

"I wouldn't dream of it," replied Bulma with a smile. She'd overheard the entire conversation with Zarbon.

Vegeta sat down in the chair beside the bed—the sound of the friction against the cloth of the chair Bulma's only clue as to his location in the darkness.

"Freeza probably knows you're here." Resignation wasn't a tone Vegeta was used to taking on and the use of it seemed out of character to Bulma. "Soon, my father will know as well. Once word gets out that we are mated to one another Vegeta-sei will be bombarded with war."

Bulma sat up and removed the blankets around her. Kneeling in front of Vegeta, she took his hands in her own. "I know," was her breathy response. "I've known since the moment I woke on this planet that something was going to happen. I've known that I would be a part of it was well.

"I know what risks must be taken. I don't expect you to trust me or to care for me the way I care for you. As far as you're concerned, you've only known me for a few days. But at least try to believe this: I will make sure that whatever role I play in the prophecy's fulfillment works out in Vegeta-sei's favor."

After an awkward silence, Bulma got up to walk away only to be halted by Vegeta's callused hand suddenly enclosing her own.

_Thank you._

His words were silent, but through the weak mental connection that they still seemed to share, Bulma could sense what he was thinking. Bulma squeezed his hand and climbed back into bed.

"Um, Vegeta, you wouldn't happen to have my pajamas anymore, would you?" asked Bulma timidly.

"Why?" It was obvious Vegeta was still deep in thought.

"Well, they'd be much preferable to sleeping in this gown."

Vegeta grunted and then started to chuckle. "Women."

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

"Nappa, I want you to send for Vegeta tomorrow. He is to meet me in the throne room. There have been some unfortunate developments in the past few days that must be brought out into the open." The King sat at his desk, sorting through political documents of some unknown origin.

"Of course, sire."

_Well, Vegeta we shall meet tomorrow. Let us hope you won't do anything too foolish._

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

"Thank you for returning these to me," said Bulma with a grin. "You have no idea how much more comfortable I'll be now." Bulma laid back down on the bed and stretched her arms and legs out like a cat.

"They _are_ cotton based after all, onna," commented the Saiya-jin no Ouji with disdain.

After returning from locating her "savage" clothing, Vegeta had lost some of the tense edge he'd developed over the course of the evening.

"Whatever, Vegeta." Bulma rolled her eyes. She didn't think he would react too severely to her sarcasm now that they'd reestablished some sort of relationship.

_Well, I don't know,_ thought Bulma. _Vegeta does seem to enjoy that whole life of torment thing._

"And you will stop addressing me so informally. At least while in the presence of others. Nothing gives you away more easily than your ignorance of Saiya-jin custom and respect," Vegeta snapped. She didn't know what had wound him up so tightly all of the sudden, but when he snapped, Kami, did he _snap_.

"I didn't realize it was so important, Vegeta no Ouji," responded Bulma without a hint of sarcasm. Bulma turned onto her side, away from the fuming prince.

Vegeta grunted. "You don't have to address me that way _now._"

"If I don't do it now then I never will. I don't want to risk 'giving myself away.'" Bulma's voice had lowered and Vegeta thought she must be tired. It wasn't everyday that she was nearly crushed by gravity after all.

"Do what you must." Vegeta made his way toward the door.

"Where are you going?" asked Bulma absently as she rolled to face him.

"You're exhausted, onna," responded Vegeta, trying to sound as as diffident possible. It would have been tragic if she thought he cared about her wellbeing or anything like that. Caring about anyone, especially an obstinate woman, was out of his emotional range, wasn't it?

Bulma rubbed her eyes. "Where will you sleep though, I mean, it's not like there's anywhere else comfortable to sleep in your quarters. I'm not going to molest you in your sleep or anything if you stay in here. There's more than enough room for the both of us."

"Really, onna. I promise you, I'll manage." Vegeta was starting to get testy. There was no way in hell he was spending another night in bed with her. With all the stress of the events unfolding around him, he didn't think sexual frustration was a good topping to his cake.

"Alright, just… don't go too far, okay? I can't sleep when you leave your quarters." Bulma started to trail off. She would be sound asleep any minute.

"Of course I won't," was Vegeta's rather staggered response.

Vegeta slowly and silently closed the door to his bed chamber behind him. Sharing such close quarters with the onna was going to be difficult. Every bone in his body urged him to hold her. Well, maybe _hold_ wasn't the most appropriate word for what he wanted to do with her.

Vegeta looked back at the door. It was tempting to sleep with her though. If not to release some of the sexual tension that had been mounting, then to spend the night in a bed with a woman.

_Ye gods, Vegeta. Get a grip!_

And with those final thoughts, Vegeta headed to the bathroom to take a _very_ cold shower.

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

After the absurd conversation with the King earlier that night, Nappa was anxious to see what all the fuss was about. Usually when Vegeta was called to the throne room it was for one of two reasons. One: his father wanted to beat him publicly to a pulp, or two: his father _really_ wanted to beat him publicly to a pulp.

_Eh, the brat's too old for that now. He's_ way _out of the King's league. I don't know what he's going to pull but it better be damned good or Vegeta-sei just might find itself with an untimely change in politics. It probably had something to do with the fragile woman they thought they had secretly stowed away. _

"Good evening, Radditz," cooed Nappa, openly mocking the lower ranking warrior. "And what brings you to this wing of the royal palace so long past your bed time?"

_Protecting the woman?_

Radditz sneered. "Some of us have real jobs rather than playing suck up to the King, Nappa," responded Radditz with a growl.

"Watch yourself, Third Class, you wouldn't want to be killed by a much stronger Elite right before the war, now would you?" Nappa grinned evilly. Playing on their class distinctions always put Radditz's panties in a bunch.

"Why are you _here_, Nappa?" questioned Radditz between bared, clenched teeth.

"Please inform the Prince in the morning that his father requests an audience with him in the throne room." Nappa paused, looked Radditz up and down, and then started to snicker. "That is, if it isn't too much of an inconvenience to you playing the little guardian solder and all."

Radditz's teeth remained clenched as Nappa walked away.

_When Freeza comes, Nappa, I hope that you are one of the first to die._

~~~~~~~(((((|||)))))~~~~~~~

Although the plush chair wasn't the first thing Vegeta would have usually considered sleeping in, it would have to do.

_All this_ and _celibacy,_ thought Vegeta.

Vegeta looked down at the loose-fitting pair of training shorts he was wearing. Damn modesty. Having Bulma there wasn't a small inconvenience like he thought it would be. It was a lifestyle change. After opening the nearest window for additional circulation, Vegeta laid down on the chair and put his feet up on the matching footrest. He was going to have the mother of all backaches in the morning.


	32. chapter thirtyone

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirty-One**

Vegeta woke in the morning surprisingly exhilarated. His sleep in the plush chair hadn't been as bad as originally anticipated and after the revelations of the previous evening it felt as if a load had somehow been lifted off his shoulders. He could handle imminent danger, but uncertainty in his personal life was a different story.

"Vegeta no Ouji." The comm screen blinked to life in the early morning light.

_Great,_ just _what I want to see first thing in the morning. Radditz's fat head._

"What is it Radditz?" asked the prince, not bothering to conceal his irritation.

"I was asked to inform you that your father has requested an audience with you in the throne room this morning."

"On what grounds? It's not like the old fool has anything to prove anymore."

"May I request permission to enter, sir?" asked Radditz after giving some creature off screen a sharp look.

"If you must." Vegeta sighed. Well, everything _had_ been going well that morning.

After bowing slightly, Radditz began to explain what had happened the night before and Nappa's strange behavior.

"He seemed _especially_ arrogant; as if he knew something big was going to happen today with your father. I fear it _may_ have something to do with Lady Bulma." Normally the idea of the King upset in anyway would make Radditz uneasy, but after spending a couple of days with the fragile creature he was becoming curiously protective.

"You think?" His words were practically dripping with sarcasm. "Alright, inform my sorry excuse for a father that I _will_ meet him in the throne room in an hour's time. And Radditz, it's probably in your best interest to feign ignorance in relation to the onna. The ignorance part shouldn't be too difficult for you." The prince grinned and Radditz shook his head.

"You always did know how to flatter me senseless, your highness." With that final comment Radditz exited Vegeta's quarters for the throne room.

_Well, father. It would appear that today_ is _a good day for you to die after all._

* * *

When Bulma woke it was not only to an empty bed, but to the dark walls and ambiance of Vegeta's quarters. Exiting the bedroom, Bulma headed toward the bathroom in hopes of getting another wonderfully relaxing bath in. The cool tile felt soothing against her tingling feet. They were still warm from Vegeta's bed. Even though he had opted not to share the night with her, sleeping in blankets traced with his scent made rest come much more easily.

Turning the faucet on in the sink, Bulma ran the water over her hands and then over her face.

_At least I didn't have another nightmare._

She reached for the nearest towel and patted her face dry. A bath was going to feel _really_ good. Movement in the bathroom mirror caught her eye and she turned around to find Vegeta standing off to the side, clad only in a towel.

"Good morning, onna. It would appear we had the same idea." He smiled but it was unsteady, as if something was bothering him. "There should be plenty of hot water left if you're still interested in that bath."

Vegeta made his way toward her and caressed her cheek. Bulma's eyes widened. She could feel his body heat as their bodies neared. She tried to stop the energy surging inside of her from closing the final gap between them. This was _not_ the same Vegeta. Reminding herself of that never seemed to help though. It seemed that no matter where she was, she and Vegeta would always have an undeniable, natural chemistry. She was attracted to him regardless of the bond they shared.

"Hmph," Vegeta grunted and released her. Apparently he'd felt the pull as well but had also decided to resist.

_What's_ wrong _with me?_

Vegeta questioned himself and as he saw Bulma's eyes glow silver, he knew what Zarbon said was true. They were mated, and powerfully so. Still, somehow he felt that their relationship wasn't just coincidence.

"I am obligated to go see my father this morning," said Vegeta as he adjusted the towel around his muscled mid drift. "But I should be back soon." Vegeta looked up at her and smiled ever so faintly and for a brief instant, his glowing eyes softened. He turned away from her, giving her a clear view of the burn mark across his back that was now giving off a sort of blue radiation.

_Once again, that was interesting._

After Vegeta was completely gone from sight, Bulma started running the bath water.

_Nice and relaxing._

The tub filled quickly and Bulma added some bath salts of a familiar fragrance. Everything on Vegeta-sei seemed to share the same spicy smell as the salt. It was intoxicating. Once a proper amount of salt was added, Bulma quickly removed her cotton PJs and lowered herself into the bath water, hissing as the steaming water touched her unprotected skin. From her position in the tub, Bulma could just barely see the door to Vegeta's bedroom.

Steam rose from the water and permeated the air with the smell of spices. Bulma relaxed and leaned her head against the back of the tub. She could get used to this. After a few moments of silence, there was the sound of a door closing and Bulma leaned forward to watch Vegeta exit the room in full royal armor. Something in her stomach tightened.

_Be careful, Vegeta._

* * *

Though the Saiya-jin no Ou was accustomed to his son's blatant acts of disrespect, his tardiness seemed especially irritating as he sat, impatiently, in the throne room. With at least 200 other nobles and senators present, the room was bustling with life as Saiya-jins of all shapes and sizes and from each of the two different continents waited for the Prince's arrival. The king stared intensely at the large wooden doors used to gain entrance to the throne room. His son had to have known he would be forced to respond this way. He was putting them all at risk—a risk Vegeta should have been especially aware of.

_Soon, Vegeta, soon._

* * *

Drying her hair with the nearest towel, Bulma didn't expect a pair of large Saiya-jin arms to suddenly enclose her in a death grip. Shocked and frightened, the startled Earthling let out a blood curdling scream as she was jerked around to face her captor. Beside himself with the humor of it all, Nappa chuckled.

"Well, aren't you a feisty little one?" cooed Nappa as Bulma started to swing and kick at him to no avail. "And quite a looker, I might add. No wonder Vegeta's kept you locked up here and all to himself."

"Vegeta! Radditz, where are you dammit? Aren't you supposed to be protecting me?" cried Bulma desperately. Of the few Saiya-jins she'd met so far, this one was _definitely_ the scariest. Tall, firmly built, and bald, he had a look of madness about him that she found less than comforting.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, little lady, but Radditz is indisposed at the moment and as for your little boyfriend, Vegeta, well, he's about to get what he deserves from dear old dad." Nappa grinned sloppily, baring a ferocious set of white teeth.

"Let me go!" Bulma struggled with the Saiya-jin for a few moments as complete horror came over her.

_I should have followed my instincts before and warned Vegeta._

"I don't think so. You're far too interesting to release now. Don't worry though. You won't be separated from Prince Vegeta for too long. Let's go see him now, shall we?" Without second thought, the brutish giant threw Bulma over his shoulder and exited Vegeta's quarters. In the hall, Radditz lay fallen on the floor, a dark bruise developing over his right eye.

_Radditz…_

After seeing her guard lying unmoving, Bulma started to scratch desperately at Nappa's back in hopes of getting close enough to grab his tail.

"Uh, uh, uh." Within a second, Nappa reached over and struck Bulma lightly on the temple, just softly enough to knock her out.

* * *

As the doors to the throne room burst open, the King stood to greet his menacing son.

"I have come, as you _commanded_." Vegeta bowed slightly to the older warrior but it was evident to everyone in the room that respect was the last thing on his mind.

"Really, brat, haven't you been flogged enough publicly to know that arriving late does _not_ put you in my good graces?" It was a threat but such an act hadn't occurred since Vegeta was very young. There was little the Saiya-jin no Ou could do to harm his son now.

"And haven't you been alive long enough to know that I am the strongest warrior on this planet?" mocked Vegeta. The King grunted.

"I was once the strongest too, Vegeta, and my father before me." Something wasn't right, thought Vegeta, as his father started to take on a tone barely hinting at some sort of sadness.

"Spare me the formalities, what exactly is it that you've called me here to do?" Vegeta was getting testy again. He didn't have the patience to listen to his father lament the loss of the former King. Sadness was weakness and the House of Vegeta-sei had no room for such a disgrace.

"Well, if you don't know, then maybe I should show you." The King smirked and made a gesture toward a guard as the throne room door was opened. Vegeta's eyes widened in horror as Nappa appeared—and he wasn't alone. In less than a second Vegeta turned on his father.

"What is the meaning of this, _old man_?" Vegeta's eyes burned fire as if the very thought of his father burned to ashes would make it possible.

"I thought you might be able to tell _me_, brat, considering it was you who hid her in your _personal_ quarters." The King's eyes hardened. "Why is she _here_, Vegeta?" demanded the Saiya-jin no Ou. When Vegeta didn't answer, the King approached his son and, without restraint, slapped him forcefully across the face.

"You _dare_ strike me, Father?" Vegeta's ki level began to rise as the enraged Saiya-jin Prince powered up.

"Do you have _any_ idea what you have done?" asked the King roughly as he grabbed Vegeta's shoulders and shook him. "Freeza knows, Vegeta. He _knows._ Does that mean anything to you? Does the future of the Saiya-jin Empire mean _anything_ to you?" Vegeta broke free and glared openly at his father, his head high.

"What future? The future of a race of warrior _slaves_?" spat back the Prince vehemently.

"A human, Vegeta. A _human_. Of all the females in the universe you found the only _human_ female remaining and decided to keep her _here._ On Vegeta-sei?" The King turned his back on his son. "You of all people should know what happened last time Freeza thought the humans to be a threat."

Vegeta was silent.

_All those screaming people. There was no way they could have known… could have expected…_

Vegeta's thoughts ran away with him.

_A year of peace treaties between the Ice-jin and the Earthlings and still… all those faces… all those lives utterly and completely destroyed along with the hope of every Saiya-jin under Freeza's rule and the irony of it was that they didn't even know it._

Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan… Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan…

"Bring her forward, Nappa," commanded the King as he looked at his confused son. Vegeta shook his head as he was brought out of the trance that had momentarily consumed him. Nappa laid Bulma down on the red carpet with a surprising amount of care before the two men and walked away. Murmurs were heard throughout the room as the unmoving body of the Chikyuu-jin was exposed for all to see.

_Someday I will have your head for this, Nappa,_ Vegeta vowed silently.

"Bulma…" Vegeta leaned down and knelt on his knees before the unconscious woman and then glared up at his father. His eyes were a magnificent golden hue with a hint of blue.

"Well, at least now I know why you're so smitten with her, brat," said the King with sarcasm. "And she is so weak and defenseless, after all. I suppose it wouldn't be difficult to—"

"If you value your life at all you will not finish that sentence." The King's words were cut off as Vegeta gripped his father's neck and lifted him off the ground. It was now the King's turn for his eyes to widen.

_Oh, Vegeta, you couldn't have…_

Vegeta dropped his father and he fell heavily to the ground. After coughing and rubbing his neck for a few seconds, the Saiya-jin no Ou rose to his feet and looked his son in the eyes. Everything was suddenly crystal clear.

"I thought maybe you were having a little fun, Vegeta, but it appears that you are more of a fool than I ever could have imagined," began the King. "An _Earthling?_! You mated with a pathetic—"

As the flash of piercing white light faded away, there was a stillness in the room that Vegeta never thought possible as all the nobles' and senators' eyes focused on his unmoving stance, extended arm, and smoking white glove. From her position on the floor, Bulma moaned.

"Listen to me, all of you," said Vegeta as he turned to the crowd of shocked Saiya-jin bureaucrats. "What you have just witnessed will be the fate of anyone who has the stupidity to _ever_ disrespect my mate again." His eyes still glowed and his aura was an alarming red. The former Saiya-jin no Ouji was not keen on idle threats. "As I'm sure you all are now aware, I have absolutely no qualms with spilling noble blood." With that last statement, Vegeta walked over to Bulma's prone form and picked her up in his arms, cradling her head on his chest.

"Vegeta…?" questioned Bulma as her eyes began to flutter.

"It's alright, onna. Go back to sleep," he said in a soothing voice. "I swear, onna, you can sleep through anything." He smiled at her as she began to slip back into a restful state. Making his way down the red carpet and to the throne room entrance, Vegeta turned to the nearest guard. "Oh, and _do_ see that the mess in here is cleaned up."

As soon as the door closed the room was filled with the sounds of distraught nobles and senators. No one was quite sure what they had just seen, but one thing was certain: Vegeta-sei had a new king.


	33. chapter thirtytwo

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirty-Two**

Although Bulma may have been knocked unconscious for nearly an hour, that didn't mean she was completely unaware of the major political happenings around her. She _did_ have the honor of coming to just in time to see Vegeta blast his father to oblivion.

_How could he_ do _something like that?_

The cultural differences were astounding. Either Vegeta was a ruthless killer and she should get the hell away from him as soon as possible, or he genuinely cared what happened to her and saved her; in which case she was also frightened. Stranger yet was that although the other Saiya-jins seemed taken aback by the happenings of the throne room, none of them seemed truly surprised.

_What kind of sick planet is this?_

But, Bulma reminded herself, hadn't Vegeta's actions proven to her time and time again that Vegeta-sei was not a planet for the weak or the squeamish? Perhaps she'd just never really accepted that the people who had produced Goku were in reality so brutal.

Bulma was helplessly confused. The contact between the two of them earlier in the morning had left her rattled and not knowing what to expect. Then to be kidnapped and looked at like a piece of trash by hundreds of Saiya-jin nobles and senators…

When the door opened, Bulma turned to greet her visitor, whatever species he may belong to.

"So we meet again, Bulma." Zarbon bowed deeply and Bulma smiled back at him. He was the image of beauty and grace and, sadly enough, even in this dark time surrounding her, she couldn't help but be a little jealous. Something glittered amber in the dim light of the room as Zarbon came into view.

_Talk about_ great _eyes._

"So, uh, Zarbon wha—"

"What am I doing here?" Finishing her sentence wasn't all too surprising. She was beginning to get used to being interrupted by the alien men around her. Zarbon smirked, eerily resembling the Saiya-jin Prince recently turned King.

"Yes." Bulma smiled coyly.

"What? You honestly think that I wouldn't just come to visit you because I find it pleasant?" He feigned being offended.

"Not if you didn't want Vegeta to usher you a death threat," said Bulma flatly.

Zarbon's voice crackled as he stifled his laugh. "You couldn't be more right."

Bulma turned away from where Zarbon was standing and laid down on the bed, facing the window. Suddenly, she felt cold.

"What happened today, Zarbon?" Bulma whispered. It was clear that whatever levity existed had completely dissipated at this point. It had only been a few days since she'd met Zarbon, and both of them knew their smiles were merely skin deep.

"What you witnessed was nothing more than a Saiya-jin tradition, brutal as it may be." He shook his head as if he himself was in disbelief. Bulma looked on at him unblinkingly, apparently waiting for him to continue. "You must understand, Bulma. Things are done quite differently on this planet. While on Earth you may have enjoyed peaceful shifts in power, Vegeta-sei does not. King Vegeta was going to kill you, Bulma. He needed the political leverage. The mounting popularity of the Prince was getting in the King's way and Vegeta saw this weakness."

"So, in other words," began Bulma, "Vegeta killed his father so he wouldn't lose his political advantage." Her voice was flat still, but the resentment was undeniable.

Zarbon smiled. "Not quite. Prince Vegeta prevented your death when he assumed the throne. He could have killed his father at any time. Though no doubt now was not the ideal time for Vegeta to become King. He's still several decades away from his prime."

"Zarbon," started Bulma, "what ever happened to Vegeta's mother? Was she killed for some sort of political move too?" Her eyes were inquisitive but weary. "Vegeta mentioned her but…" She trailed off.

"You could say it had to do with politics, yes." His eyes became hard and Bulma figured it must have been a subject few dared to breach. She decided to let it go.

Bulma gazed at Zarbon with a rather blank expression. Obviously she wasn't going to get any information about Vegeta's mother out of him.

She turned her thoughts back to Vegeta and what had transpired earlier in the throne room. She wasn't sure what to think about seeing Vegeta kill his father, but if he'd saved her in the process then that had to mean something.

"You said that Vegeta was several decades away from his prime. What does that mean?'" asked Bulma, abruptly changing the subject to avoid awkward thoughts. "He's pushing 30."

"Most Saiya-jins don't reach their optimum level of physical maturity and ability until their mid 60s or 70s in Standard Time." Zarbon's forehead crinkled as he fell silent, apparently in deep thought.

"I see."

"Well, lovely lady, I'm glad you have a better understanding of the happenings of the palace now. But I will warn you: if Vegeta values your life enough to endanger the success of his empire and the up and coming war, that makes you a very valuable commodity for his enemies." He stood and smiled at her again but this time, sadly.

"No doubt His Highness will visit you later this evening. Do me a favor. Don't tell him I came here. He wouldn't take to that news well, as I'm sure you can imagine." Zarbon straightened his cape and leggings in a surprisingly feminine gesture.

Bulma couldn't help but picture him beaten to a bloody pulp by the all-so-considerate former Saiya-jin no Ouji. No, she _definitely_ wouldn't tell Vegeta about this.

* * *

Despite the casualty with which Vegeta had killed his father, he couldn't help but dwell upon the consequences of his actions. Vegeta-sei was now inevitably going to be at war and not just with Dokar-sei but with Freeza's empire as well.

_The Ice-jin will be afraid now. The prophecy…_

Bulma had to have something to do with it. There was no way that her arrival on Vegeta-sei at such a precarious time could merely have been the result of coincidence. Especially considering the fact that she was a member of a dead race and should have been exterminated nearly 30 years prior. It was baffling.

_Vegeta?_

It was the onna's voice. Bulma's voice. He'd felt her cry out to him previously while she was sleeping. The sound of her voice resounded as her mind briefly brushed his own and then faded. Something didn't quite strike him right.

The Saiya-jin no Ou couldn't believe what his father had done. He had to have known that Vegeta would have no choice but to kill him. He would do anything for Bulma—well, almost anything.

The Saiya-jin King let his mind wander as he made his way back to his quarters. He knew that undoubtedly Zarbon had visited his mate in the time he'd been gone—probably for the best too. Vegeta wasn't in the emotional state to deal with answering any of Bulma's more delicate questions after what had happened in the throne room. Sometimes Zarbon impressed him with how well he knew the new Saiya-jin no Ou.

Upon arriving at his door, Vegeta let his mental guard down in an attempt to read his mate's thoughts. She'd put up a decently strong mental barrier but some of her confusion still managed to seep through to him.

"Bulma…?" he asked almost timidly as he entered his quarters.

_Not that I should have to enter my_ own _chambers with caution._

Thought the Saiya-jin King with disdain. He didn't really mind her staying in his quarters, but dammit, he had a reputation to maintain.

"Hm…?" she mumbled as he quietly closed the door behind him and made his way toward the bed. Bulma was wrapped up in his comforter and looked as if she were hopelessly tangled in his sheets.

_Another night of tossing and turning._

Vegeta glanced over at the chair he'd slept in the previous night and groaned. Although it hadn't been as uncomfortable as he'd imagined, he wasn't thrilled at the prospect of spending another night away from his own bed. Bulma stirred on the bed beside him and Vegeta sat in the chair; leaning over and placing his elbows on his knees to rest his face in his hands.

He was King. He wasn't at his prime. And he'd publicly claimed her as his mate. Not the wisest of political moves. Once word spread, which he was sure it already had, uniting the Saiya-jins would be difficult. Many warriors were already concerned about the war with Dokar-sei and now that their King had formed a rather strong and mysterious bond with an Earthling it was only a matter of time before the Ice-jin started a war as well.

_An Earthling… An Earthling will become the Legendary… Onna, why are you here?_

Bulma opened her eyes and stared up at Vegeta. Her eyes were glowing silver as she looked at the new self-proclaimed King of Vegeta-sei. Sensing eyes upon him, Vegeta immediately sat up and looked at the woman lying in his bed. His eyes glowed a brilliant gold and Bulma smiled awkwardly.

"You know I can't answer that question, Vegeta no Ou." She'd read his mind, and though the thought of being King had horrified him in a nauseating way, for some reason, hearing her call him by his formal title was reassuring.

"So you've learned about Saiya-jin custom," said Vegeta with a smirk. Bulma's eyes widened as she realized she'd given away her new found knowledge.

He could tell she was trying to hide Zarbon's visit from him. Not that he necessarily cared. Having an advisor come and speak with his mate, especially a trusted one, was probably wiser than leaving him to explain Saiya-jin politics. "I know that Zarbon visited, onna. His scent is all over the room," he said the words casually hoping to read her reaction. He couldn't help but notice the relieved look on Bulma's face.

"He thought you'd be angry with him," Bulma replied.

"He should. But know this, onna: _never_ try to keep secrets from me in the future." Vegeta's eyes flashed a more powerful gold and then faded as he continued to stare at her intensely.

"Yes, Vegeta no Ou," Bulma said as if she'd just been chastised by a parent and looked away.

"War is not the time for secrets. Especially between mates." Why was he explaining himself? He stood and slowly walked toward his bed, eventually sitting next to Bulma and resting his back against the headboard. After a few moments of silence, there was a light pressure on Vegeta's right shoulder and he looked down to see Bulma resting her head there. It made him start to smile in a strange sappy sort of way and he immediately checked himself.

Her head was a familiar weight to him and suddenly Vegeta could remember dozens of different occasions where this strange creature had done the exact same thing. They were laying in a bed together surrounded in black sheets, Bulma resting her head contentedly on her lover's shoulder, the mark on her upper back pulsing alluringly in the darkness. Where were these persistent thoughts coming from?

A few strands of hair had again fallen across Bulma's face and Vegeta mused that they must solely exist to vex him. Of course, that thought didn't prevent him from gently tucking the bangs behind Bulma's ear. Bulma smiled contentedly at the contact and sighed as she wrapped her free arm around Vegeta's stomach pulling herself closer to the former Saiya-jin Prince. Still not accustomed to the physical contact, Vegeta stiffened and removed his hand from Bulma's face.

"It called a hug, Vegeta," said Bulma without removing her head from his shoulder or even opening her eyes. "It's a human form of affection."

"I know what a _hug_ is," responded Vegeta sounding a bit insulted.

"Then you should know it's even better if the other person hugs back," she said threw back, taking her head off of his shoulder and looking up at him. Her eyes were still glowing and Vegeta smiled inwardly at her audacity. She was so damn assertive. And for some reason, it pleased him that he let her get away with it.

Lost in his thoughts, Vegeta cupped Bulma's chin and lightly brushed her lips across his own. He felt a spark of energy as he had the first time he'd kissed her but this time she had fewer mental walls in place and for an instant he could have sworn he was on Chikyuu gazing at the stars. His eyes widened as he pulled away and didn't know what to make of the strange vision.

"It's you. It has to have something to do with you," Vegeta whispered to Bulma. She looked at him with an inquisitive gaze and waited for him to continue. "You're the one who will help me fulfill the prophecy."

_The Legendary…_

"I don't know, Vegeta no Ou," she said with true uncertainty. Her voice seemed to quiver for an instant and Vegeta noticed she was shivering. Apparently the kiss had sparked some strange consequences in her as well.

"You no longer have to use my formal title, onna," said Vegeta, trying to break the tense and confused atmosphere surrounding the both of them. "At least not while solely in my presence. I've told you this before," he added. His accent was starting to become more noticeable. It tended to do that whenever he was nervous or emotional. Not that Vegeta could ever truly be called 'emotional.' It had happened only a few times before on Earth.

"Vegeta, why is it that you and your men rarely speak your native tongue?" asked Bulma with curiosity.

"Diplomats are taught to speak Standard at a very young age. Only Standard is spoken within the confines of the palace," he began. "The first language we encounter after birth is the native tongue of Vegeta-sei, but after a few years, children of noble families are taught Standard, the language we are speaking right now."

"So is that one of the reasons why Radditz was confused when he found me in the forest? Because I spoke Standard so fluidly?" asked Bulma as if coming to epiphany.

"Yes. Well, that and the rather infamous burn mark across your shoulder blades. Why do you ask?" He ran his fingers lightly across her back. The mark began to glow and Vegeta could see its illumination through her shirt. Bulma hissed but it was so similar to a moan, Vegeta didn't know what to make of it.

"There's only one thing I've ever heard spoken in your native tongue. And believe it or not, you're the one that said it to me. Of course, it was in a different reality or existence, or whatever you want to call where I was before I mysteriously ended up here," she said with obvious chagrin.

"Really?" It was now Vegeta's turn to be inquisitive. "What did I say?" The question had been delayed and was asked with apprehension.

"Something along the lines of, '_Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan…_' But I can't be sure if that's an accurate—"

The look on Vegeta's face was enough to let Bulma know that she'd said enough. He'd paled considerably after the moment she'd said only the first word but that didn't even compare to the look of pure nauseated horror he possessed now.

"Onna, are those the words you've often heard in your dreams?" he asked with barely concealed panic in his voice.

"Yes. At least they permeate my thoughts whenever I see you in my dreams," she responded now afraid of where their conversation was going.

"Soon. It's going to happen very, very soon."


	34. chapter thirtythree

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirty-Three**

"What do you mean?" Her eyes were already wide.

"That chant. Bulma," he looked right into her eyes, "it's part of our history. Part of an ancient prophecy that we've been trying to unravel for quite sometime. We knew that the Legendary would be of the noble blood line, we knew that he would be a Chikyuu-jin, but when it all would take place…?" His voice trailed off as he became hopelessly lost in his own thoughts.

"So the chant never specifically related to the _Khon'daia na_?"

"No. I was taught to use the words to calm me during the worst parts of the _Khon'daia na_ but it more precisely relates to the prophecy. You must understand, I've been raised to become the Chosen One—to become the Legendary." His look intensified and his eyes flashed.

Bulma watched his eyes as an infinite number of thoughts raced through them.

"Have you heard those words anywhere else before? A vision, anything?" probed Vegeta. "I need to know."

"All the time. I've been having dreams about it ever since I heard it for the first time," Bulma admitted.

_What was my father thinking? And he wanted to _destroy_ her?_

"I must speak with my advisors," said Vegeta with haste. "There is much to be deliberated. Not only regarding this matter," he glanced at her uneasily, "but the one from earlier this evening as well."

Bulma could tell that he was more than rattled. The scowl with which his face was usually adorned had deepened and creases had formed between his brows. Not to mention his tail lashing wildly behind him. For Vegeta, the look was one of sheer panic.

Vegeta stood from the bed quickly, his back stiffened—his body language giving away how immersed in thought he'd become. His facial features had always been difficult to read. Understanding the many seasons of Vegeta's scowl was an art Bulma had spent nearly a year of close contact with him developing. But as she found with many Saiya-jins, what the face wouldn't tell, the tail or the body language would.

"Vegeta," started Bulma as Vegeta approached the door, "I wanted to thank you for protecting me earlier."

Without turning back around to face her, Vegeta slowly nodded his head and left the room.

* * *

His advisors hadn't been much help. Not that Vegeta really expected them to be. After all, they _had_ been the ones that goaded his father into accepting Dokar-sei's declaration of war at such a crucial time in the first place.

_Idiots._

It was useless. Even after his confrontation in the throne room with his father and his ascension to the Saiya-jin throne, Vegeta still felt like he lacked the frame of mind to deal with the Dokar-jin peacefully.

And what of Bulma? His new mate had created quite the uproar. News of their relationship had already spread across the planet and many of his advisors didn't even know how to approach the subject. Not that he blamed them. He _had_ issued a death threat to anyone daring to disrespect her. Part of him couldn't understand his own actions. They hadn't even consummated their relationship for god's sake. At least not on this plane of existence.

"Your Highness," came Radditz's voice from down the hall.

_Baka, can't even guard my chamber door properly._

"Yes?" responded Vegeta with irritation. He moved away from the wall he was leaning against and waited for the other warrior to approach him.

"Sir, I—"

But Radditz didn't have time to finish his sentence before he found himself pinned to the wall by the fuming Saiya-jin King.

_He's going to break my neck._

Thought Radditz with fear in his eyes. It wasn't like he wouldn't deserve it.

"So, tell me, Radditz," started Vegeta with malice in his voice, "why shouldn't I kill you after your weakness nearly lead to the death of my mate?" Vegeta's eyes were on fire as the grip on Radditz's neck squeezed tighter.

"I—" Radditz couldn't even manage more than raspy whispers as the murderous Saiya-jin no Ou's grip threatened to crush his throat. Vegeta looked him in the eyes sharply, allowing Radditz to see how enraged he truly was. His ki had flared around him and if Vegeta had possessed such a gift, his look would have been enough to disintegrate the third class warrior.

Vegeta released him roughly with a flick of his wrist and the larger warrior collapsed to the ground.

"You're useless," said the Saiya-jin no Ou barely above a whisper before turning abruptly and disappearing down the hall.

_Why didn't he kill me?_

But Radditz didn't spend much time dwelling on these thoughts. He'd rather not think about how a Saiya-jin whose ki spiked suddenly to two million earlier in the throne room had almost killed him.

* * *

"You're slippery, Zarbon. That's for sure," said Vegeta leaning in the door way.

"Vegeta no Ou." Zarbon's back stiffened as he barely controlled his shock at hearing the Saiya-jin's voice.

"Made a visit to my mate the other day?" asked Vegeta with a smirk. Zarbon relaxed. This wasn't the 'I'm going to beat your sorry ass into the ground' smirk that he'd feared.

"Hai, Vegeta," answered Zarbon, slowly gaining back his composure.

"You know me well." It was a simple statement, and to an outsider the meaning would have seemed unclear. Zarbon nodded in response. That was as close to thanks as he would ever receive from the Saiya-jin King.

"Was there something else? You seem… preoccupied," asked Zarbon, carefully choosing his words.

Vegeta stepped further into the room and stood by the window, leaning on its reflective surface. Moonlight always seemed to cast an eerie glow over his regal features. Perhaps Zarbon had seen him go Oozaru one too many times to feel comfortable watching Vegeta bathe in the moonlight.

"You know, Zarbon," he paused, "it won't be long before Freeza finds out about the girl." Freeza already knew. He and Zarbon both knew that. It would have been impossible to assume otherwise, especially after Vegeta's death threat regarding the woman and her link to the prophecy.

"We'll be ready."

"And Dokar-sei?" asked Vegeta absently. He had no idea how he was going to find a way out of the war with them. After his father threatened to purge their planet and 'strip the universe of the disgrace of their culture,' as he diplomatically put it, he was left without a clue. Before tonight he would have simply crushed them. No civilization declared war with the Saiya-jin Empire without expecting to be obliterated. They had to know that.

"That issue has become rather delicate in light of current events." Zarbon was deep in thought.

"_Rash'kin a sonat su ma. __Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan._" Vegeta uttered it under his breath. The words sounded beautiful—as if they were written specifically to pass over his lips. There was an awkward silence. No, there was no way the onna could have fabricated the chant. It was the last link between the Saiya-jin no Ou and the prophecy.

"Prepare the troops, Zarbon. If Freeza wants a war, we'll give it to him." His voice was full of determination but his face still looked thoughtful as he approached the door.

Everything was going to change.

* * *

After Vegeta left the room, Bulma found it impossible to fall back to sleep. Even if she had, it wouldn't have been peaceful. The dreams had been occurring not upon occasion now, but every time she shut her eyes, the visions returned. She was beginning to feel like they were haunting her.

Suddenly overcome with chills, Bulma moved away from the bed and threw Vegeta's robe over her shoulders. It was far too large for her petite frame but very warm and comforting. It felt like being wrapped in a Vegeta blanket. Deftly, she approached the large glass doors leading to the balcony and released the locks holding them shut.

The sky was ominous—a deep purplish red barely giving away the secret that the sun was about to rise. At this time in the early morning, the body of water below the palace was calm and very reflective. Under the current conditions, it looked like a sea of blood. Bulma shivered again as she leaned against the stone railing and sighed. It was hard to believe that the atmosphere on the planet just a few days prior had been more welcoming, rich, and beautiful. Now all she could sense was an overwhelming aura of destruction and death.

Her presence had caused a complete change in atmosphere. Int eh few days she'd been there, she'd been threatened by more than one member of the royal family, several guards, and even Vegeta's most trusted advisor. The contemptuous looks she was given in the throne room only supplemented her fear. She could go her whole life without ever seeing hundreds of Saiya-jins look at her that way again. It was more frightening than she'd ever admit.

Vegeta would do all he could to protect her. She knew better than to doubt his loyalty to her after the previous day's gory transition in politics. He was powerful and no Saiya-jin in their right mind would dare cross him. But the Saiya-jins weren't the ones she was truly afraid of. The thought of the Ice-jin still made her blood grow cold and her heart sink to her stomach. She'd overheard some of the royal guards speaking in hushed tones about Freeza and his family preparing an army.

_A sea of blood. That's what Freeza will always leave in his wake._

She was scared. She was scared of the strange man with his smooth words and his decisively icy disposition. That a creature so innately evil could possess such limitless power terrified her. In the end, only Goku's purity and ascension to Super Saiya-jin were a match for the murderous creature.

_And Freeza still managed to survive._

Sensing movement and an unwelcome presence, Bulma glanced down from her balcony to the rocky edge where the water met the palace.

_Calm down, Bulma girl. You're starting to become too jumpy._

She thought as she quickly made her way back to the glass doors. Remembering her close call with the gravity failure a few days prior, Bulma decided to heed Zarbon's warning about Saiya-jin hostility. She sure as hell wasn't going to stand out on the balcony while some rogue Saiya-jin spied on her and thought of ways to kill her.

Locking the doors behind her, Bulma closed the thick curtains and made her way back to the bedroom. She longed to be back on Earth. Back to the way things were before she was transferred to this strange world that had no right to exist.

_Why am I _here_? How did we even get here?_

The door to Vegeta's room opened and Bulma jumped, turning quickly to see who was entering.

"It's okay, onna. It's only me," came Vegeta's voice from the doorway. He sounded tired. It had been a few hours since he'd left and she knew that he hadn't gotten any sleep. She looked at him questioningly through the dark of the room as he moved closer and sat down on the bed.

"As I've said before, Freeza knows you're here and is on a war path." Vegeta pulled off his breast plate and gloves and laid back onto the bed, resting his head on the nearest pillow. His head was throbbing.

"How soon will he be here?" questioned Bulma softly as she sat on the chair next to the bed.

"Within two or three months. None of our probes have been able to locate him quite yet," he answered as he placed his forearm over his face. He looked stressed and worn out. Bulma sat in the chair for a few minutes, watching him. She wasn't sure what to do and her own feelings were running rampant. She missed home and more than anything she missed Vegeta holding her until she fell asleep. Being here made her feel lost. She leaned forward and covered her face with her hands. Everything was so messed up.

"What are you thinking about?" came Vegeta's voice out of the darkness.

"Home," she replied after spending a few moments gathering her thoughts. Vegeta was silent.

"You've been locked up too long in my quarters. Perhaps tomorrow we can find something around here that will spark your interes," he replied; breaking the tension in the room. Bulma smiled then, glanced awkwardly at the bed where Vegeta lay. He was still wearing his boots and body suit. Not the most comfortable attire.

For lack of anything else to do, Bulma walked towards the end of the bed and began to remove Vegeta's boots. He stirred at this but didn't say anything to stop her. After removing them she placed them together next to the bed and sat down beside him. His face was still hidden beneath his arm as he lay unmoving. Bulma sighed.

"You know, onna, when one is trying to sleep less noise and movement is preferable," said Vegeta irritably, laying his arm back down and turning on his side to face Bulma.

"My apologies," she said stiffly with the faintest hint of sarcasm. Without warning Vegeta took hold of one of her arms and pulled her down on the bed next to him. All Bulma could do was let out a small cry of protest before his arms were wrapped around her. After the initial shock faded away, Bulma found herself to be rather content just laying in her mate's arms.

_Kami, how I missed this._

Vegeta's fingers found their way into Bulma's hair, massaging the back of her head. She could feel herself being pulled toward him. The feeling wasn't as strong as it had been on Earth but it was there nonetheless. She let out a soft contented moan and snuggled a little bit closer to his body. Her back was pressed against his stomach and her breathing slowed down. This was what she needed.

She sighed mentally.

The robe wrapped around her was starting to make her feel overheated and she squirmed trying to pull it off of her shoulders without moving too much. Now that she was in the presence of the real Vegeta, being wrapped in his robe seemed silly.

Noticing her struggles, Vegeta reached out and removed the offending article of clothing from Bulma's body and threw it onto the floor.

"Thank you." Bulma snuggled herself close to Vegeta once again and reveled in the feeling of his warmth pressed against her.

"My pleasure," replied Vegeta, and Bulma could tell that he must have been wearing his characteristic smirk.

His arms felt strong and powerful around her. How such a man could hold her gently amazed her. She wanted to touch every part of him and savor the feeling of being intimate with one of the most powerful men in the universe. It was then that Vegeta began to kiss her neck. Lost in her thoughts, she hadn't noticed that while running his fingers through her hair Vegeta had been carefully brushing it to the side, revealing her shoulder. Fire shot through her whole body and she found herself tilting her head further to the side giving Vegeta further liberties with her sensitive skin. She let out a loud satisfied moan and Vegeta temporarily ceased.

Not willing to let the moment pass, Bulma rolled over so that she was facing Vegeta. They looked at each other for a few moments trying to read each others' thoughts. Vegeta's eyes blazed a brilliant gold. Their faces were only inches apart. Breaking the stare, Bulma glanced at Vegeta's lips and swiftly claimed them with her own. The Saiya-jin no Ou couldn't help but chuckle mentally at this action as the woman lying next to him pressed her body up against his own.

Just as before, visions shot through his mind. Visions of Chikyuu, Freeza, Namek, Vegeta-sei, the Z warriors, training day in and day out, and feeling so close to being the Legendary he could taste it, and somewhere was a lingering feeling of guilt. The onna's mind was completely open to him, flooding him with memories of her home. He didn't feel it was intentional, on the contrary, it almost felt natural to have so many memories coursing through his mind—as if they were his own and merely being unlocked. He could remember a dark room and the onna sitting before him. She was wearing a Saiya-jin body suit at staring at him intently, a faint blush on her cheeks. Something about these memories struck him. These weren't _her_ memories—they were his own.

Realization snapped in Vegeta's mind as a bright flash of light filled the room. The two of them were back on Chikyuu, staring down at their own bodies collapsed on the floor of their Capsule Corp balcony. It was still night time and it appeared as if no time had passed at all.

Without warning the two were back on Vegeta-sei holding each other closely once again. A familiar aqua aura was surrounding them as the two lay there in silence, both desperately trying to rationalize what had just happened.

"Vegeta?" questioned Bulma in a meek and frightened voice. In all his time on Chikyuu, Vegeta never would have imagined her using such a voice in his presence. It killed him.

He pulled her closer to him and wrapped his arms more protectively around her torso. What was going on? He could remember everything in detail about his life on Chikyuu. Namek, Freeza, Kakkarot, and even dying. The duality of his memories was astonishing.

"It's okay, onna. It's just me," he whispered into her ear.

The woman lying in his arms started to shake slightly and Vegeta could feel faint moisture on his shoulder. Over the past few days he'd seen her tear up plenty of times but this time was different. These were tears not of fear or confusion, but tears of relief.


	35. chapter thirtyfour

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirty-Four**

Lying in bed, Vegeta let his mind wander. Not two weeks ago he would have given anything to be here. To be the Saiya-jin no Ouji again. It was all so bizarre and surreal. He'd finally done it—he was Vegeta no Ouji turned King, his planet existed, and they were going to war. The sacrifice had been worth it, and now that Bulma was here with him… still, he couldn't overcome a sensation of guilt.

Light was beginning to seep, ever so slowly, through the tall curtains in his bed chamber, reminding him of what shadows the new day would cast upon Vegeta-sei.

_Freeza…_

The one entity that had haunted his childhood was coming to Vegeta-sei. Having to watch his home planet destroyed once had been nearly unbearable. He'd suffered a strike to his pride in a way then that no Saiya-jin child should have had to endure. But he wasn't a child in this dimension nor was he weak and defenseless. Everything was starting to make sense.

Freeza had sent him to Chickyuu to purge it of all sentient life forms—the most important were the humans—the one threat to the Cold family that could actually cost them their position as the most powerful empire in the universe. Having the only Saiya-jins left under his control, it must have been easy enough for him to perform some twisted form of hypnosis or other things Vegeta didn't want to think about on him and his fellow warriors. The Cold clan's technology was extensive… they could have done whatever they wanted while Vegeta was trapped in a regen tank without him even knowing it. Even erased selective parts of his memory.

It would have been ironic, Vegeta mused, had he succeeded on Chickyuu. The only true Saiya-jins left in the universe destroying their one hope of overcoming the monster who'd taken everything else from them. It was just the kind of sadistic thing Freeza thrived on. No wonder Freeza threw a hissy fit when he found out the Saiya-jins had been unsuccessful. If the conflict on Namek hadn't gotten in the way, Freeza surely would have directed his immediate attention to Chickyuu.

_Imagine the shock when that idiot Kakarott went Super Saiya-jin on Namek._

Freeza never saw it coming. Though Kakarott's ability to become the Legendary still eluded even Vegeta. Something was missing and try as he might to wrack his scrambled brain for some trace of connection, Vegeta only succeeded in finding himself with a headache.

A light pressure on his shoulder and warm breath on his chest reminded Vegeta that he was not alone. Bulma lay next to him, her head cradled in the curve between his shoulder and neck.

The transition to this form of existence or whatever it could be called, Vegeta hadn't decided yet, had been stressful for the weak creature. Vegeta didn't understand why the device malfunctioned and they ended up here. If not for her above normal mental capacity, Vegeta was sure she would have completely collapsed under the strain of it all. Vegeta-sei was hostel even to its natives; he could only imagine how such a cultural shock would affect her. Or more alarmingly, how it would affect her view of _him_.

As royalty, Vegeta had never had to consider how his actions or the actions of his people might be seen to outsiders. The Saiya-jins were the superior race, so naturally any doubts other species had about Saiya-jin custom were thought the direct result of inability to understand Saiya-jin complexity. But Bulma was different. _Her_ opinion determined the level of intimacy she allowed him mentally and physically. Not to mention the fate of his line.

He ran his free hand casually across her loose hair, subconsciously considering how soft it was. Soft and delicate the way she was.

Saiya-jin females were only very superficially different from Saiya-jin males, but Bulma screamed female in a way Vegeta had never known. Seasonal females couldn't even hold a candle to her. Maybe that was why the Saiya-jin population had always been so low.

_How my father managed to waste his time away in that plague of a harem for so long disgusts me._

On the other side of his quarters, Vegeta's comm screen blinked to life and waited for a command code. Growling in irritation, Vegeta gently removed Bulma from his person and laid her head down on her own pillow. She was so soundly asleep that Vegeta doubted she'd even noticed his fluffy replacement.

"Yes?" questioned Vegeta with irritation only barely disguised by the quietness of his voice. While taking his calls was important, so was letting his mate rest.

"Vegeta, I apologize for the interruption," came Zarbon's even, if slightly electronic, sounding voice. Vegeta relaxed a bit. If it had been anyone else…

"Well, what is it?" asked the Saiya-jin no Ou with impatience.

"We've retrieved some rather interesting transmissions from King Cold's sector of space that require your _immediate_ attention." Zarbon's voice was still passive, concealing the true meaning behind his words. As an alien on the planet, Zarbon was required to use public channels for transmissions even if they were directed toward Vegeta.

"I understand." The comm screen went blank and Vegeta stared at it for sometime, momentarily captured by the traces of energy still fading from the screen.

_I am not my father._

He reminded himself as he tugged on a black body suit and pinned his cape to his shoulders.

_I am the Legendary. This time, we will win._

* * *

When Bulma finally woke she wasn't surprised to be in bed alone. She'd had enough surprises in the last 48 hours to meet her quota for the next several millennia and, needless to say, she'd had her fill. Rubbing her blotchy and swollen eyes, she snuggled further into her pillow. She would have preferred snuggling up next to Vegeta, but Kami knew some of his new responsibilities took priority over playing her personal body pillow.

_Though it would be nice to wake up at least _once_ this week with him still here._

She thought in mild irritation as she rolled over and covered her face with another pillow. The sliver of light piercing through the curtains seemed to know exactly where her face was.

"Ahem," came a throaty voice from somewhere next to her bed.

_Now what was I just saying about surprises? For Kami's sake, I nearly wet myself!_

"Lady Bulma?" Radditz. It was Radditz. At least it was someone she knew.

"Yes?" Her voice was groggy and irritable.

"The King has requested an audience with you in the throne room this morning."

"And?" It seemed one word sentences were her specialty at this time in the morning.

"You'll need to wear something formal. I think he plans to formally introduce you to the nobles." The inclination in his voice was meant to be hidden but instead gave Bulma the impression Radditz didn't quite agree with Vegeta's decision.

"So what does that mean?" Bulma asked as she rolled over to face him in a relaxed manner. The only response she received was a blank stare. "Okay. What is your personal opinion on the affair? And yes, I do understand that it is not your place to question the King. I'd just like a straight answer." She received a few more blinks in response before he finally decided to speak up.

"I think that if Vegeta plans to unite the Saiya-jins, bringing you out in the open will only cause further tension between the tribes and the Royal House."

"What do you think he's going to do?" She was starting to feel a little nervous. If agreement between other noble houses was settled the way it was in the House of Vegeta-sei then this ceremony was going to be much more colorful than she would have liked.

"He's going to make them swear fealty to you, Bulma. And if he succeeds, all those sworn to you will have to fight for you and in some cases even die for you." She wasn't quite sure why it needed to go to those extremes.

_It probably has something to do with being mated to royalty._

She tried to push Vegeta's voice telling her that Freeza knew she was on Vegeta-sei out of her mind. There was no way of escaping the reality behind Vegeta's actions. She was somehow the key to the fulfillment of some ancient Saiya-jin prophecy and he needed to know that no matter what happened she would be protected.

'_It's you. It has to have something to do with you.'_

"Everything alright?" inquired Radditz hesitantly. She must have zoned out for a minute. Bulma met Radditz's eyes and smiled.

"So about this whole 'formal attire' thing…"

* * *

"So," began Vegeta when he finally made it to Zarbon's quarters, "what have you found?"

"It's only bits and pieces of transmission," said Zarbon frankly. "And you know those technicians. If they can't get something to immediately work all they do is pound it until something _does_ happen anyway." Vegeta snorted. It wasn't just the technicians—it was Saiya-jins in general.

"Show them to me," said Vegeta as Zarbon brought his portable computer over to where Vegeta was standing. After entering the security codes that would prevent some third class yuppy from getting more than his fill of high security transmissions, the recordings began playing.

"There's been a division on Vegeta-sei, Lord Freeza…" Every ten seconds or so there were bursts of static making the mechanical voice unclear. "Your reports were correct. Vegeta no Ouji has succeeded his father… taken a human mate… nobles appalled… no chance for an alliance… I wait for your orders…" The transmission ended there.

"That voice. Were you able to trace it?" asked the King with disgust.

"Unfortunately, no. While we were able to break the transmission code, the code for the voice scramble was a bit beyond our technicians' understanding." Vegeta could tell Zarbon was as disappointed as he was. Having a traitor on the planet wasn't particularly making his homeworld seem any more hospitable.

"How many more of these have you traced?" he asked more evenly.

"It would seem that these sort of communications have been going on for years, Vegeta. Decades even. There are hundreds of communications found in hundreds of databases. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if this particular Saiya-jin traitor was someone close." Zarbon trailed off.

_I bet he was the one who told Freeza about the Chickyuu threat as well._

"Do you think something like this could have lead to the destruction of Chickyuu?" asked Zarbon in a probing voice. Sometimes Vegeta wondered if he could read his mind.

"No doubt. The prophecy was, after all, nothing but a legend told by word of mouth passed on since the time of the first Legendary." He paused. "Only Saiya-jins could have known about it. No one in their right mind would purposely inform the Cold Empire of the one thing that could cost them their place as the strongest power in the universe."

"Unless they'd already made a warrior's oath to Freeza," pointed out Zarbon.

"We're going to have to call him out publicly for this, Zarbon," said Vegeta after several moments of contemplation. "Whoever he is."

"I was thinking the same thing," he agreed.

"Put in a call for the Commander. I want him here in time for the ceremony," the Saiya-jin no Ou ordered as he headed for the door.

* * *

The ceremony began roughly around noon, only after all the nobles arrived from the more distant ends of the continents. None of them looked too thrilled about being cramped together, Bulma realized, as she sat on the cold stone throne next to the larger throne belonging to Vegeta. Her seat had been vacant for years and the stone was sharp and unfriendly from its lack of wear. Fortunately, the gown she'd chosen had just enough fabric to it to pad her or at least prevent her butt from going numb during the rather bland ceremony.

Nobles of all shapes and sizes approached the platform where Vegeta no Ou and Bulma sat. All of them were dressed in formal battle armor and wore scouters, their formal military attire only serving to remind Bulma that no matter what rank Saiya-jins were born, first and foremost they were warriors. Bulma, on the other hand, was wearing a deep red gown with the symbol of the House of Vegeta-sei embroidered in gold thread on the fabric across her breasts. If anything, her attire made her feel more alienated than the fact that she _was_ an alien on this strange world.

She tilted her head ever so slightly to acknowledge each noble as they bowed to her and swore their fealty. Some stared at her with blank expressions, their eyes the only key to how they really felt, while others approached her with more friendly, well, as friendly as Saiya-jins could be, expressions. From her seat beside the King, Bulma could tell that Vegeta was keeping a close eye on the reactions of each dignitary as they approached her. He wanted to know whom he could really trust to follow him without having to be threatened with incineration.

Eventually, what seemed like the never ending stream of nobles ended and Vegeta called his elite Royal Guard up one by one. Each bowed on one knee before Bulma and uttered a warrior's oath to protect her under any circumstance. Next were the chairs of all the different departments from agriculture to internal affairs.

_How do they _sit_ on these things for so long?_

At this point, the ceremony had lasted nearly three hours and Bulma was beginning to wonder just how many departments there were on Vegeta-sei when Vegeta declared the official part of the ceremony was over. There was silence and the room waited. Apparently, the Saiya-jin no Ou had an announcement to make.

The room became silent as the majority of its occupants wondered just how scandalized they would feel after hearing another one of Vegeta's outlandish announcements. Groaning mentally, Bulma prepared herself for the colorful portion of the ceremony, the part she'd dreaded.

After calling on Nappa, the brutish Saiya-jin approached his King with his head held high and Bulma couldn't help but notice how the sunlight reflected off the bald dome of his head. Nappa stood at attention briefly before lowering himself to one knee in a sign of respect for the Saiya-jin no Ou.

"King Vegeta," Nappa said in a punctuated military voice as he brought his right arm across his chest meeting his left shoulder with his fist.

_That must be their equivalent to the salute._

She continued to stare at the bulky warrior. There was some kind of madness about him. She half heartedly wished she'd paid attention all those times when Goku had tried to teach her how to read auras. That would probably be a most intriguing skill to have on such a strange planet. Then again, she thought, as she turned her attention back to reality, sometimes it was better not to know what Saiya-jins were thinking.

Vegeta's face turned savage as he stood to his full height and walked the short distance between himself and his kneeling Commander. "We have all been deceived in thinking that the recent fluctuations in the Saiya-jin Empire were solely the cause of external forces." Bulma's eyes washed over the crowd, noticing the different reactions as her mate turned to address the Commander.

"There is a traitor in our midst, Commander," Vegeta scowled. "I have personally viewed numerous transmissions originating here on Vegeta-sei that were directed toward Lord Freeza." Vegeta spat the name as if the idea of merely passing it over his lips caused him bodily harm.

The room was still, and judging by the looks on the nobles' faces Bulma noted that they did, in fact, look scandalized.

"As you have been one of my father's closest confidantes for decades I am making it your personal responsibility to track down this insult to the Saiya-jin race and bring him to me." Nappa's face was a mask of indifference as he listened to the Saiya-jin no Ou's words. "Consider yourself lucky, Commander. This task is the only thing standing between you and an excruciating death for ever presuming to lay a hand upon my mate." Vegeta was growling again.

_I was wondering why Vegeta hadn't decided to fry this guy yet._

Nappa rose to his feet and stood in the straight-backed Saiya-jin military stance that Bulma had grown accustomed to. He towered over the King even though Vegeta was on a platform nearly six inches above the Commander.

"We haven't, as of yet, received a formal declaration of war from the Cold Empire," said the King as he turned his attention back to the tribal leaders. "But make no mistake, these transmissions, more than anything, are a wake up call. Freeza is on his way."

Nappa still stood at attention and Vegeta flicked his wrist in the warrior's direction to let Nappa know his presence was no longer needed.

"Formal declaration or not, we are going to be prepared," stated Vegeta with resolution in his voice. "Join me in this and we shall single handedly bring the Cold Empire to its knees." Vegeta's tone left no room for discussion and the confidence he exuded was contagious as looks of affirmation filled the room. They would be ready.

* * *

Black lips pulled into a smirk as the images faded from the comm screen.

_What a clever little monkey._

While the scouter transmissions weren't the best of quality, they certainly served their purpose in keeping him informed of Saiya-jin happenings. Like when that mysterious and pathetic little Earth creature had been brought out into the open in Saiya-jin court. Very useful information.

The Ice-jin mindlessly swirled the wine in his glass. He pressed his lips together. Vegeta's ki had spiked to nearly two million before his spy's scouter had malfunctioned. Those scouters were always so temperamental. Having to set them to only specific expected ki levels rather than a larger range caused them to short circuit so frequently. He smiled. He couldn't even remember how many times _he'd_ been the cause of scouter error.

Nevertheless, such an extensive jump in ki was dangerous, especially with the presence of the Earthling. She shouldn't even exist. Humans simply hadn't had the technology to send crafts into space that could preserve a living human for so long. It had been _years_ since he'd destroyed their planet.

Pulling the transmission back up on the screen, Freeza selected the final portion of the King's speech. _"Join me in this and we shall single handedly bring the Cold Empire to its knees."_ Vegeta's face was frozen on the screen, strong and deadly. No, this time it was more than an idle threat.

It was a challenge; a warning.


	36. chapter thirtyfive

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirty-Five**

A month and a half passed by with a relative sort of calmness. The nobles, mobilized by the determination they'd seen in their King's eyes, were quick to spread word of the oncoming threat. What few Elites weren't already enlisted in the King's Guard were sent to the palace to begin formal training as officers. Unfortunately, though many of the Elites were high born and maintained prestigious positions on Vegeta-sei, allowing these powerful warriors off-world for missions that required kis barely above 300 seemed like an unnecessary waste. This meant that while the Elites were the strongest on the planet, their knowledge of actually leading troops was at a minimum.

Nappa was one of the first to volunteer his services which was more that a shock to Vegeta. Usually it took an abnormal amount of force to get the headstrong Commander to do anything of importance. Like the simple task of tracking down the source of all the transmissions to Freeza. He'd discovered a few leads, but nothing notable. Vegeta assumed his willingness to be involved was to remain in the Saiya-jin no Ou's good graces. Vegeta didn't blame him.

Bulma seemed a lot happier now that Vegeta was back to normal. Mostly she could be found tinkering around in the engineering department with other scientists of various species. The most recent development had been making the battle armor she was so fond of even more resistant to ki blasts and other sorts of threats. Vegeta could remember walking her to the science ward and handing her, with that trademark smirk of his, the specs for the armor she'd been so enamored with for years.

"Guess there's at least one subject where Saiya-jin scientists outsmart you," said Vegeta in a voice that was as close to teasing as the Saiya-jin no Ou could get. Glaring at him, she grabbed the specs from between his gloved fingers.

"Thank you," she bit out sarcastically as her eyes washed over the data.

Ever since then her days had been occupied by computers and strange materials that Vegeta cared little for. While he was required to have extensive knowledge of the sciences, he'd never partaken in them for pleasure unless they were of immense importance to him. The gravity chamber the onna had created and the device he'd been working on in secret were perfect examples. His fingers itched with the memory of his creation lying flat in his hand.

_If the onna ever found out…_

Within a week after his announcement about Vegeta-sei's imminent doom, Bulma was working with the Saiya-jin technicians to build extensive gravity chambers for some of the more Elite Saiya-jins, including Vegeta, to train in. It bordered on ridiculous watching the looks on the Saiya-jins' faces as Bulma ordered the engineers around and drew complicated technical maps to aid in the construction. Although considered frail and weak to most of the Saiya-jins on the planet, she was most definitely not stupid.

The two of them had discussed their new home on Vegeta-sei many times as Bulma tried to figure out how they ended up in an alternate dimension. She'd never heard of a technology that could move living creatures through space time.

But not belonging in this dimension didn't change the fact that Freeza was on the way nor did it change the fact that they were still learning to deal with one another. Sharing close quarters had at first been a struggle as both felt suffocated by the others' continual presence. The stress of the last month's happenings caused both of them, especially Bulma, to be overly emotional.

Bulma was lucky, in Vegeta's opinion. Humans had very underdeveloped telepathic skills and while she was able to merely ignore Vegeta's vocalized random bits of edginess and anger, Vegeta could not get her every waking thought out of his head. As a Saiya-jin, he'd learned at a young age how to put up mental walls. Some of the most horrific forms of torture involved not bodily harm but rather mental probing. He'd learned that first hand as a servant of Freeza. But no matter how he tried to close his mind to her, there was some part of him that was always open _especially_ over the course of the last few weeks.

There was something different about the onna lately anyway, Vegeta had noticed. While she did seem to be enjoying herself, she was glowing in a disconcerting way. She was positively radiant and Vegeta could swear her life force was even stronger than it had been when they were together back on Chickyuu. If her witty comebacks and revamped argumentative nature weren't any indication, then her new exaggerated vigor for all things technical certainly drove the point home. He welcomed the change.

He smiled to himself in a very unSaiya-jin manner and shook his head. While they may have been separated during the day, nothing delighted him more than their verbal bouts when they were finally together in the evenings. On more than one occasion, Bulma had threatened to spend the night in her own room but her threats were very soon turned to bluffs. She never made it more than a few steps toward the door before turning on Vegeta and barraging him with another slew of insults. These incidents usually ended without a winner. But rarely did a night pass when the two weren't physically fulfilled.

He had to give his little Chickyuu-jin credit where credit was due. She was a feisty one and Vegeta wondered if he would ever grow tired of their constant squabbling. Zarbon was the only other person he'd ever allowed such vocal liberties with him and those were most certainly never in public. Bulma seemed to delight herself in publicly berating him. The victorious look on her face never failed to remind him of their first encounters on Chickyuu after the Namek scuffle. Her eyes always flashed with a delighted sort of victory every time Vegeta minutely lost his composure.

_If only she had formidable ki._

He couldn't remember how many times he'd thought that since he'd met her.

The training regiments were going well and from what Vegeta could tell by his constant inspection of the troops, Zarbon's influence was beginning to show. Having worked for Lord Freeza for more years than Vegeta had in his own dimension, Zarbon knew how to train even the densest of Saiya-jins how to handle run ins with adversaries much stronger than themselves. Vegeta frequented the training fields and often partook in training some of the more skilled Elites. Despite the fact that most of the Saiya-jins were already awed by Vegeta's impressive and legendary ki, they now realized that their King was a battle worthy leader as well.

"Bulma seems to be doing very _well,_" carefully remarked Zarbon one afternoon as they were observing a group of elites doing their daily drills.

"She has been spending the majority of her time improving some technical aspects of our military," replied the King with the briefest hint of a question in his voice. He always did seem to know when Zarbon was trying to get at more than he let on.

"Have you noticed anything _different_ about her lately?" he asked a bit more probingly. "Some of the technicians down in the engineering ward mentioned something about her being particularly… _moody_ over the past few weeks." Vegeta grunted nasally.

"She's a human Zarbon, they practically breed being emotional into their culture." His voice was dismissive. He didn't understand why Zarbon was so concerned with Bulma's personal matters.

Vegeta gave his reptilian confidant a sharp look out of the corner of his eye before returning his attention to the field. After a few minutes of awkward silence, Vegeta sighed. "Well, what is it then?"

"Vegeta, have you two been being careful?" His voice was hesitant and Vegeta's jaw dropped as he turned to look at Zarbon. If the tone the creature used was implying what he thought it was… Vegeta looked like he'd been slapped across the face.

"Our… personal _relations_… are of no concern to you!" replied Vegeta in a shocked and exasperated voice.

"Of course, my King," was his respectful, if a bit testy, response. "It's just with Freeza arriving shortly…" He let the comment fade, knowing he was on dangerous grounds. "Don't you remember what happened the last time a Saiya-jin King took a mate? What Freeza did to your father—"

"Have you gone completely insane, Zarbon, or do you just wish for death to meet you decades before your time?" growled the King in a dangerous voice. Some part of him knew that Zarbon had every right to be concerned. Given Bulma's importance to the fulfillment of the prophecy and to Vegeta-sei's victory, her physical state constantly needed to be considered. Vegeta's posture relaxed a little as he released the breath he'd been holding in irritation. Zarbon relaxed as well.

"I'll look into it," said Vegeta's hard voice as he turned his attention back to the troops. After spending an adequate amount of time seeing over their progress, Vegeta decided it was time he left and dealt with more disconcerting matters.

_This is _just_ what I need._

Thought Vegeta sarcastically as he stomped towards the palace and the engineering hanger Bulma was sure to be near.

* * *

The progress they'd made on the Saiya-jin armor was substantial, considered Bulma as she stared at her handiwork with an appraising eye. After focusing her time for a week or so on designing and building gravity chambers that would function properly under Vegeta-sei's stifling 10 gs, Bulma had finally had the opportunity to indulge in her pet project of several years. Vegeta had been the one who introduced her to the scientists responsible for modifying the armor design and Bulma couldn't help but feel touched that he'd remembered her interest in the strange material.

Inspecting the porous quality of a piece of fiber under her low power microscope, Bulma wondered why it suddenly felt so warm in the room. Someone had been toying with the environmental controls for the last few days and Bulma was beginning to be annoyed by their lack of respect for her comfort. Vegeta-sei's climate was already warm enough without the air conditioning constantly being turned off.

She rose from her chair to go check the climate controls on her own. There was no way she was going to ask some idiot Saiya-jin who didn't know the difference between hot and cold to adjust the controls anymore. As of late, whenever she'd told one of the men to change the climate controls back they'd just walked to the wall panel, looked at the settings, and turned back to Bulma with confusion. She'd just about had it.

After fidgeting with the wall control panel for about five minutes, Bulma decided that the adjustments were satisfactory and turned to make her way back to her seat.

"You know, onna, working in here without any of my guards to protect you probably isn't the wisest of ideas," came a familiar voice from the corner nearest the door.

"Trying to sneak up on me again, Vegeta no Ou?" asked Bulma dismissively as she sat back down in her lab chair. In the past few weeks their link had become so strong that Bulma was able to sense his presence from miles away making his 'surprise' visit to the engineering department much less disruptive than it used to be. Vegeta grinned evilly.

"Now why would I do something like that?" asked Vegeta with mock innocence in his voice. He used to love sneaking up on her. It had been more difficult with guards assigned to watch over her during the day, but Vegeta found the effort worthwhile. The Saiya-jin no Ou walked slowly over to the lab table where Bulma was sitting and fastidiously studying some specimen she was holding between tweezers. He placed his left hand on the table close to where Bulma sat and positioned himself so that his mouth was right next to her ear. Placing his free hand on her right shoulder, Vegeta inhaled deeply seeking to discover whatever was different about her as Zarbon had suggested.

Putting down her work and turning to face him, Bulma looked at Vegeta quizzically.

"Something wrong?" asked Bulma carefully. She wasn't quite sure what the deal was, Vegeta had never really been the sort for public displays of affection. Even if there was no one else in the room, Vegeta usually did little more than rest a hand on her shoulder or, even more occasionally, brush the hair from her eyes.

Vegeta's eyes still glowed the way they always had since the energy transfer and from such close proximity Bulma could tell just how amazingly bright his typically dark Saiya-jin eyes really were. His look intensified.

"Your scent, it's different," said Vegeta simply but with some sort of connotation Bulma couldn't quite place.

"I didn't change my shampoo or anything…" Bulma trailed off. She still wasn't quite sure where Vegeta was going with this. Vegeta grunted at that.

"I can't _believe_ I've figured this out before _you_ have, onna," said an exasperated Saiya-jin no Ou as he stood up straight and crossed his arms.

_What am I going to _do_?_

Thought Vegeta without bothering to put up as strong of a mental barrier as he should have. Weak as her telepathic abilities may have been, Vegeta sometimes failed to remember that she _could_ pick up on the majority of his thoughts if he wasn't careful.

"Do about _what_?" asked Bulma with budding irritation in her voice. She did not like being disrupted from her work, even by Vegeta, and touching as it was that he had come to see her, he was starting to weird her out.

"Have you been consistent with your contraceptive hormone therapy?" asked Vegeta in an accusing manner. He was quite frazzled and standing in that impersonal cross-armed I-am-the-Saiya-jin-no-Ou stance that was characteristic of him when he was trying to pretend not to be bothered by something. Bulma's heart jumped a beat.

"Of course I have, Vegeta no Ou," she replied a bit defensively. "Can we _please_ take this discussion somewhere else?" she asked looking nervously at the door and the small recording device located above it. There was all kinds of surveillance hooked up in the room and she didn't particularly feel like having their personal matters broadcast to everyone in the communications department. Vegeta did not bother to hide his chagrin at their talk being delayed but complied with a pained sounding, "Whatever."

Their walk to the royal wing of the palace was surprisingly quiet and many of the guards seemed worried about the lack of heated conversation typically exchanged by the two. Most stood at attention with their hands behind their backs and their faces perfect masks of composure, but Bulma had the distinct feeling that after she and the Saiya-jin King passed by, the guards were exchanging nervous looks with one another.

After making it to the safety and isolation of their own quarters, Bulma turned to Vegeta.

"Now what exactly is all of this about?" she demanded with urgency in her voice.

"You," he said as he pointed an accusatory finger at her, "are with child." Bulma went to open her mouth, prepared to shoot down whatever nonsense she was sure Vegeta was about to spout, and then abruptly closed it. Vegeta watched as the Chickyuu-jin female turned all colors of speechless and briefly wondered if all Chickyuu-jin were capable of such absurd changes in facial expression.

"_What_?!" she finally managed to make out in a harsh whisper.

"You heard me correctly, onna." Vegeta's voice was reproachful and Bulma couldn't help but wonder how exactly he felt about what he was implying. There were a few more minutes of shocked silence before Bulma managed to gather her wits. This time there was no question what her sentiments were.

"I _told_ you I didn't know how the Saiya-jin equivalent of birth control was going to affect my system, Vegeta!" Bulma wailed. "Why couldn't you just listen to me? How could we have been so careless?" She was practically hysterical. "Are you one hundred percent positive?" she demanded while glaring at him.

"There is an unmistakable presence about you, onna," said Vegeta evenly. If he was upset about the situation, Bulma had no way of telling. He seemed to be the image of composure.

"How long have you known? Kami, my cycle is only a few days late as it is," she trailed off.

"I started noticing subtle changes to your physical state a few weeks ago but failed to attribute them to such an untimely occurrence," stated Vegeta with a little bit more resentment in his voice than Bulma cared to hear.

"Well, I apologize for contributing to such an 'untimely occurrence,' Vegeta, but I don't remember you complaining when this 'occurrence' must have taken place," she spat at him perhaps with a bit more venom than she had intended.

"Watch your tone, Bulma," said Vegeta in a voice promising retribution. She was always good at breaking down what little composure he'd spent so much time building up.

"I will not 'watch my tone' while you call my being pregnant an 'untimely occurrence.' You have contributed to this as much as I have," she pointed out.

_Yes, I most certainly have._ _Over and over and over again._

Thought the Saiya-jin no Ou with a smirk. Bulma's face flushed as Vegeta failed, once again, to keep his thoughts private.

"I'm not going to pretend that I am not concerned about how your conceiving will play into the most current developments and the prophecy," said Vegeta sobering up in order to prevent another outlandish outburst from his mate. "I do not see how keeping the brat could be advantageous given our current situation," said Vegeta in an impersonal and logical brute Saiya-jin sort of voice.

Bulma's eyes widened as she protectively placed her hands over her abdomen as if the act alone would protect the developing life within her.

"Vegeta, I am _not_ aborting the baby," she said sternly as if she were offended.

"Onna," said Vegeta in an equally stern tone, "I do _not_ intend on rearing children for at least another decade." This seemed to be a subject Vegeta had not been prepared to compromise on.

"I don't care what you _intended_, Vegeta. I will not kill something that you and I created just because you'd rather face your responsibilities in another ten years." Vegeta stared at his mate, aghast. Why were all Chickyuu-jin so attached to their young? It wasn't like they couldn't have more. He frowned.

"This is _not_ up for discussion, Bulma," said Vegeta, using her name to emphasize the importance of his point. Bulma hated when Vegeta acted like he knew better than her. As if a race that sent their newborn children off alone to purge planets at birth could really know _anything_ about raising children.

"You're right, it's not," she said with a surprising amount of strength in her voice and stormed out of the room.

The Saiya-jin guards that had been standing in position outside of the King's chambers watched on, in an uncomfortable way, as Bulma stormed out of the large doors.

"What are you looking at?" she spat at them when their eyes met hers. The two men watched in shock as she stomped her way to her own chambers and slammed the doors.

From behind the doors the men could hear the King swearing but decided to dismiss the strange events. It was not their place to pry into their King's relationship with his mate. Besides, they'd learned from observation that fights between the two never lasted _that_ long, right?


	37. chapter thirtysix

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirty-Six**

Bulma slammed the door shut without considering that Vegeta probably hadn't even heard it. She was pissed and had no intention of hiding it. Who the hell did he think he was? Ordering her around as if she didn't have a brain in her head. Didn't he remember who _she_ was?

She plopped unceremoniously down into the nearest chair and stared down at the floor, sobering considerably as her mind wandered.

Kami, when had this happened to her? Shouldn't pregnancy be something she _noticed_ before now? She _had_ been feeling warm and tingly for the past few days and maybe been a bit more energetic.

_How could he have realized it before me?_

She leaned over and cradled her face in the palms of her hands as she mentally replayed the scene from earlier in her mate's quarters. Having the Saiya-jin King look at her with disgust had almost been more than she could handle.

This was not solely her responsibility, dammit. She reassured herself with a new found sort of strength. And what was up with her reaction to him wanting her to abort it? He had every reason to think terminating it to be the wiser decision. It was just another piece of information Freeza could potentially use as leverage and Bulma was already walking a fine line. As the days passed she found herself becoming terrified at the prospect of being within Freeza's blasting radius again.

She mindlessly trailed her fingers across her flat abdomen. Was there really some sort of life growing there? She smiled despite herself. She was going to be a mommy. Would she be a good one? Would Vegeta even help her raise their child? Would he look more like her or like his father? And why did she keep referring to the child as 'he'?

_Probably because Vegeta is the father._

Somehow she couldn't picture the brooding Saiya-jin King with a dainty little girl. Well, maybe she could, just not right _now_. He'd probably rather die than have a female first born. Purity of the House of Vegeta-sei and all that.

She was still mad at him. He should have known that approaching her in the engineering ward was _not_ the way to bring up such a personal matter. It was almost as if he were trying to provoke her into an argument about it. He lived for that sort of thing though, didn't he? She thought with a sneer. But this was nothing to joke about.

Frankly, she was already stressed enough. As the days passed and Freeza's ship came closer, her dreams had intensified. There was hardly a night she didn't toss and turn or if she couldn't sleep, just lay still as not to disturb Vegeta. But despite her efforts, he always had a way of knowing something was wrong. Though the Saiya-jin no Ou was not usually the cuddle buddy sort, he allowed himself to be more affectionate with her if he was pretending to be asleep.

Saying that Vegeta was affectionate with her would be deceiving herself, she admitted. By human standards, he was, in the least, very withdrawn. But when he was around her, something about him just seemed to soften. At first she'd wondered if it had anything to do with the nearness of their shared energies. She couldn't deny that some part of herself did tend to feel less tied down when she was near the Saiya-jin King. Her body longed for his nearness continuously when she wasn't in his presence. Though during the past few weeks her urgency to be near him had subsided somewhat.

_Of course it has, I _have_ been living with a part of Vegeta _inside_ me after all._

It all made sense. She was more aware of her mate and had less of a pull towards him because part of his energy had been with her the whole time. She knew where he was because, in a way, he was always with her. It was a gift. A strange, untimely, wonderful gift.

She rolled her eyes. Since when had she become so sentimental? She'd been with Vegeta for what, two months at the most? She wasn't even sure that he loved her. Hell, she wasn't sure that she loved _him_. Could having a child in such a strange dimension and during such a precarious time really be in her best interest? It wasn't, and she knew it, but somehow her steadfast logic didn't seem to be preventing her from wanting the baby.

She was keeping it. Vegeta would just have to deal.

* * *

He'd waited for her to return for over an hour while pacing back and forth in his quarters. She'd never actually stormed out on him before—at least not since the formation of their bond. This child was _not_ something he was prepared to handle right now. Why couldn't she just listen to him? Even if he weren't the _King _for god's sake, she could never just accept any opinion other than her own. To top it off, she crucially lacked any respect for the authority he possessed on this planet. Not that he'd _ever_ known her to respect his birth right. Not even when they were on Chikyuu.

It was over two hours after Bulma's rather obnoxious exit before Vegeta finally stopped swearing and just sat in the chair that was still near the bed. He needed to think about this.

_How can I convince her to abort the child…_

He thought after careful consideration.

_If some alien part of me isn't convinced that it should be terminated as well?_

It had taken him nearly two hours to realize it, but he couldn't help being strangely attached to the little warrior growing inside his mate. Would he be as strong as Vegeta? Would he look like his father and grandfather before him? Would he even have a tail? The last thought made him a little queasy. How could he call his son Saiya-jin if he didn't even have a tail? He meant that in a very hypothetical way though, of course. It wasn't like he actually _wanted_ the brat. Or did he?

Vegeta growled and quickly made it to his feet before marching, with rather loud stomps, to where the enormous windows lied at the far side of his chambers. Ripping the heavy curtains to the side, he unlocked the window and stepped out onto the balcony. The night air was surprisingly frigid, noticed the Saiya-jin King as he protectively wrapped his lashing tail around his waist for extra warmth. His first instinct was to erect a protective ki shield around himself that would filter out the cold but somehow Vegeta knew that being comfortable would only prevent him from considering the matter at hand with his full attention.

Upon reaching the rail, he paused, crossed his arms, and looked up at the stars. They looked so different here than from on Chickyuu. The sky seemed brighter as its view was not impeded by the artificial lighting found in most of the big cities. He'd forgotten the benefits of the Royal Capital being so far away from a real city.

The seclusion of the night wrapped around his still frame as a gentle breeze began to pick up pace. He slowly inhaled and allowed himself to be filled by the scent of the night air as he was overcome by memories of his childhood. A few years after being forced into Freeza's service he hadn't even been able to remember the exact shade of the Vegeta-sei sky. Most of all, he could remember feeling horrified that it was becoming increasingly difficult to remember the planet's fragrance. Scent, more than anything, would always tie him to this place.

And Bulma smelled of it. She smelled of the planet, of him, and of a thousand other memories he'd forged both in this dimension and the one in which they belonged. He was part of her now just as this planet was. She was just as much a part of his identity as the planet he'd longed for during countless numbers of sleepless nights. Something inside of him ached.

He would do it. He would allow her to keep the child.

* * *

The chaos that was the medical wing of the palace was a strange sight to almost all of the Saiya-jins having the misfortune to pass by. There were a ludicrous number of guards standing watch at the door even though it was quite easy to see what was going on inside through the rather large infirmary windows. The King was pacing across the floor with a maddened expression on his face. It was no wonder there were so many guards swarming the pace. The Saiya-jin no Ou was looking particularly ferocious.

"We'll need to perform a physical examination," a voice could be heard from the inside.

"A _what_?" boomed the Saiya-jin King with shock and horror in his voice.

"Vegeta no Ou, calm down," ordered Bulma with a soothing voice. "It's so he can see how the baby is affecting my body." Though Vegeta didn't seem to calm down much, his tail stopped lashing violently behind him and several of the med techs visibly eased. The King gave her a sharp look before returning to pacing and all the while keeping a close eye on the ministrations of the med tech who was innocently performing his examination.

Bulma had to stifle back a chuckle at her mate's reaction. Apparently Vegeta wasn't too fond of the idea of other men having any sort of contact with her body. It was frustrating but flattering in and odd way. She turned her attention back to the tech taking her blood pressure and watched his hands shake as he placed some Saiya-jin contraption around her arm. His face was pale.

_This is what I get for being bonded to the most temperamental Saiya-jin on the planet._

Thought Bulma with a mental sigh. Everyone was utterly terrified of him.

_Vegeta? _

She questioned telepathically. It was a gift she seldom used and Vegeta's head twitched in her direction immediately. She had to prevent herself from laughing again. After all, the whole purpose was to prevent the medical staff from witnessing their conversation.

_Yes?_

His voice was short but she knew she'd gotten his attention. She just hoped he'd react to her request in her favor.

_I think you should leave._

At this, he stopped pacing and stared at her with his head raised high and eyes narrowed. The lack of movement signaled an atmosphere change in the room and the tech working on Bulma paled considerably more. He was far too pale for any Saiya-jin, and looked up at the Saiya-jin no Ou with barely concealed terror. It was like something out of a cartoon with the tech gulping and looking slowly back and forth between the woman he was examining and his King.

Vegeta's barrier dropped momentarily, allowing Bulma a glimpse of his concern for her condition before giving the tech a look that couldn't be mistaken for anything but a threat. He smirked characteristically and crossed his arms.

_Though scaring the tech to death would be _highly_ amusing. He looks like he's about to wet his panties._

Replied Vegeta with sarcasm and at that comment Bulma openly smiled. Vegeta's smirk deepened a little and he nodded his head at his mate and the medical staff.

"I believe I have some other matters to attend to," said the King passively as he strode out of the room. Once the doors were completely closed, Bulma's tech let out a huge sigh and this time Bulma laughed whole heartedly.

* * *

Zarbon had been waiting outside the entrance to the medical wing for nearly an hour before the King exited in an unexpectedly docile manner. Nappa had been standing outside the door as well. Zarbon wasn't quite sure what was so important about the royal couple taking a trip to the infirmary to have piqued the bulky Saiya-jin's interest. The brute seemed to be everywhere as of lately. He'd never liked Nappa and that was saying a lot considering he was known to be one of the most tolerant entities on the planet.

"Everything alright?" asked Zarbon cautiously as the Saiya-jin no Ou approached him. Bulma's pregnancy had yet to be publicly announced and besides Zarbon, Radditz, the medical staff, and the King's Guard, no one had any idea what their little trip to the infirmary had been about.

"She wants to keep it," he said in an even voice. Zarbon knew he was withholding some piece of information but he didn't want to push it. The Saiya-jin no Ou was stressed enough as it was. "She seems to be in good health," said Vegeta with a trace of concern in his voice. He already considered Bulma to be extremely fragile and he couldn't even imagine how giving birth to a Saiya-jin child would damage her physical condition.

Zarbon smiled. "She'll be fine."

"Of course she will," snapped Vegeta, resorting back to his more Saiya-jin 'I-feel-nothing' side. He cared more about the little human than she'd ever know, but he wasn't about to go waving his feelings around like banner for everyone to see. _Especially_ Zarbon. Zarbon loved proving to Vegeta how silly it was for Saiya-jins to maintain their emotionless facades.

"What news is there of Freeza's arrival?" probed the Saiya-jin King, abruptly changing the subject. Apparently he'd spent enough time thinking about the dilemma with his mate and future child.

"A couple of weeks tops," Zarbon said with an exhausted quality to his voice that Vegeta seldom heard from the creature. They were all ready for this to be over with. "We expect a transmission from him within the week."

"The Elites seem to be improving," noted the King with optimism. At first, he'd thought them hopeless. Training nobles to get their heads out of their own asses was a difficult thing to do on any planet. Saiya-jin nobility was _especially_ stubborn. Many of the Elites would have rather sat fanning themselves in court or dueling for control of their households rather than training to be useful in the Saiya-jin military. He'd almost forgotten how much he despised dealing with the clan leaders.

"Indeed." Zarbon smiled to himself. It was flattering to hear Vegeta compliment his progress with the troops.

"But will it be enough?" Vegeta wondered out loud. They were fooling themselves if they thought any amount of man power would ever be enough. He'd experienced that first hand back on Namek, not to mention the first time his planet was destroyed. Vegeta grimaced. He didn't know what he'd do if his planet were destroyed again. There was only one power in the universe strong enough to defeat the Ice-jin—the power of the Legendary—and try as he might to grasp it, the Saiya-jin no Ou still experienced little more than fleeting moments of that great power while he was training.

"Vegeta, if you can pump out even a tenth of the power you were exuding the day you claimed the Saiya-jin throne, winning this battle will be like child's play." Zarbon was confident. A little too confident, in Vegeta's opinion. He could remember that day clearly but more than anything he remembered feeling a part of himself become uncaged. A part of himself he'd never cared to admit he possessed. Bulma's imminent danger and his father's snide comments had driven him nearly to the edge of reason until all he could feel was the presence of a pure white light tearing down his barriers like tissue paper as a part of him forced its way into existence. He'd never been more aware of himself. It was exhilarating and horrifying at the same time. In that instant, the universe was his playground and _no one_ was ever going to threaten his mate again.

All of it had to play into his favor this time. He was the Saiya-jin no Ou, the strongest warrior in generations and the obvious choice for ascension to the level of the Legendary. So how did Kakkarot manage to do it?

_A third class brat…_

He was so close. He'd felt that way for months now yet still the closest he'd come to ascension was his scuffle in the throne room with his father. And she'd been there. Defenseless and weak. Saiya-jin infants could have defended themselves better than she. Still, somehow, she was the key to his power.

_Rash'kin a sonat su ma. __Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan…_

The words were strange to him yet familiar in an odd way. In the dimension he came from the words were to control the strange fluctuations caused by the _Khon'daia na_ but here on Vegeta-sei something about the words lingered. They called to him and reminded him that the fulfillment of the prophecy was at hand, but he still felt like he was missing something essential.

Zarbon had stopped chattering for nearly ten minutes prior to their arrival at the communications wing and Vegeta turned on him abruptly as if coming out of a trance.

"Zarbon, I need you to do something for me," the green creature nodded his head. "Find out everything you can about the Super Saiya-jin."

"But I thought the Elders already taught you the legends when you were a child?" questioned Zarbon while tilting his head ever so slightly to the side.

"There's more than that," responded the King. His eyes were beginning to glaze over as he stared out into space thoughtfully. "There has to be."


	38. chapter thirtyseven

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirty-Seven**

"How lovely to see your face again, Zarbon," greeted the Ice-jin with what seemed like true pleasure.

"It has been quite sometime, Lord Freeza," responded Zarbon with a coolly detached expression the Ice-jin had not expected from his former confidant.

"Really, Zarbon, no need to pout," said Freeza with a smirk. Some people in the communications room shifted uncomfortably as Zarbon and the powerful Ice-jin conversed. Although Zarbon had sworn an oath of fealty to Vegeta-sei decades ago, many of the Saiya-jins still did not trust him. His casual conversation with their greatest adversary was doing nothing to assuage their fears.

Zarbon relaxed the slightest bit but his eyes hardened. "What is the nature of your visit to Vegeta-sei, your Majesty?" asked Zarbon, redirecting their conversation to the matter at hand. At this Freeza openly broke out into laughter.

"Don't even pretend to play coy with me, my pet," warned the Ice-jin with a smile but barely concealed malice in his voice. "I have a few things I desire to discuss with a certain Saiya-jin King. I hear he's taken a mate. A _human_ mate."

"I'm afraid any questions you have about the King's personal matters will have to be answered by King Vegeta himself," added Zarbon cryptically.

"Very well." The displeasure in Freeza's voice was apparent. "Tell King Vegeta I expect a conference with him at his first convenience." The screen went blank as all the men in the room turned to look at the green skinned man still staring at the comm screen. Coming back to reality, Zarbon turned away from the screen only to face the communications officers who were still very obviously staring at him.

"Don't you all have jobs to do or something?" questioned the creature as he glared at them all. He hated having to take such high profile calls in such a public place. There were already enough rumors about him in the capital.

Vegeta wasn't going to be happy but it wasn't like the situation was pleasant in the first place. Bulma's presence on Vegeta-sei had broken some _very_ non-negotiable treaties and now the survival of not only the Saiya-jin species but also the existence of the planet was on the line. He'd hoped this day would never come and that the two rivaling empires could maintain some sort of peace regardless of the animosity between them. Keeping war at bay had been easy with the late Vegeta on the throne but his son had a strength of conviction his father couldn't have imagined.

Zarbon still didn't quite understand how Bulma had ended up in their dimension, but given Vegeta's protective nature toward her he dared not question his sire's authority. She was an asset and more than once had beaten him at a battle of the wits, but she was also a liability. Had she not shown up, they never would have been in this mess.

* * *

Zarbon's premonition was correct, as confirmed by the med techs, Bulma was going to be a mother, and although the thought of a mixed blood heir was generally looked upon with disdain, many of the Saiya-jins were too occupied with the on coming war to pay the royal family much attention. This was their saving grace.

With Freeza's ship orbiting the planet, training the troops had become increasingly difficult. Everyone knew the Ice-jin had come for a war—or in the least Bulma's head—but to Freeza's knowledge the only war the Saiya-jins were actually preparing for was the one with Dokar-sei. Still, there was something to be said about Saiya-jin blood lust. Fulfillment of the prophecy was a little too close at hand for Freeza's liking and if the Saiya-jins thought they even had a chance at finding the Legendary, they would make the first move towards war. Freeza, more than anyone, was aware of this.

Vegeta had met with Freeza, at the Ice-jin's request, though both rulers had found the meeting less than fruitful. After expressing his displeasure regarding Vegeta's choice of a partner, the Ice-jin had practically demanded that the Saiya-jin King turn Bulma over to his custody. Flat out rejection was not something the Ice-jin had expected. The Saiya-jin King had said he was having far too much fun entertaining the onna to hand her over so soon.

Everything balanced on Freeza's not finding out about the heir. As long as he believed that Bulma was an unlikely find and that she was merely a fleeting distraction for the King, they were safe for a short time. After all, Freeza's patience was not limitless.

Envoys were sent to Dokar-sei in a last attempt to smooth things over and try to avoid war. Vegeta's father was the cause of their rather unfortunate entanglement with the small planet and Vegeta was hopeful that, if anything, they could turn the terms of battle in a direction a bit more civilized. Negotiations would undoubtedly be difficult considering how the new King had supported his late father's war endeavors before his death. He just hoped the Dokar-jin were forgiving. He hoped.

On a more personal level, getting along with Bulma was becoming trying as her personality became volatile at best. Her pregnancy was developing more rapidly than the techs had thought it would. It had been so long since any Saiya-jin female had gone through a natural birth that the rapid development of Saiya-jin fetuses was attributed more to the technology used than the natural growth rate of Saiya-jin children. Apparently Saiya-jins were fast developers.

Bulma frequently walked around rubbing her stomach, still mourning the loss of her perfectly flat abdomen. She was barely showing not two months into the pregnancy and now that several more months had elapsed, she was not only glowing with pregnancy, but bursting as well. Often before they retired for bed Vegeta could hear her cursing in the bathroom no doubt furtively smearing some sort of lotion all over the front of her body to prevent the dreaded stretch marks that filled her with such horror. Vegeta thought she looked good with the extra curves.

He was beginning to sense the child more strongly as the days rolled on. Waking in the middle of the night after feeling an unnaturally high flare of ki became something of a ritual. The first few times the little warrior made his presence known, Vegeta woke in a rush, ready to blow the would-be assassin that had somehow made it into their private chambers to hell. He'd been pleasantly surprised when he realized the true source of the outbursts. At its strongest, the ki burst ranged in the lower Elite level, but now whenever around Bulma, Vegeta always felt like he was in the presence of a third class warrior. After some time he'd managed to tune it out so that it felt like a gentle humming in the back of his mind. The tie to his son was remarkably strong.

To the surprise of the doctors, Bulma wasn't feeling the least bit taxed or drained of energy and was consuming food with a ravenous hunger that Vegeta had never expected to see from the slender Chikyuu-jin. Bulma also appeared physically stronger and often Vegeta found himself wondering if the ki signature he felt radiating from her was just coming from the baby. By all appearances, it seemed that just as her body nurtured the young Saiya-jin, the baby's blood was helping sustain his mother.

For the first time since he'd met the unbearably obstinate creature, Vegeta was wishing he could converse with Kakkarot's mate. Had she experienced these same changes? Was bedding a Saiya-jin and giving birth to his child part of the source of her super-human strength? Was a certain amount of power and longevity going to linger with Bulma as it did with Chi-chi?

Bulma rolled over and slithered one slender arm across Vegeta's mid section.

_Still can't get used to her responding to my moods…_

Numbly running his fingers through his mate's hair, Vegeta was woken from his reverie by a spike in ki and a loud crashing noise coming from somewhere down the hall. Gently, he extricated himself from Bulma's arms and gave her a kiss on the forehead. He'd become strangely attached to her lately; making catering to her moods and comfort his prerogative. He turned his attention back to the scuffle in the hallway. As idiotic as his guardsman might be, it wasn't worth waking her. The increased amount of stress had left her restless and, if possible, even more cranky than usual.

Leaving his quarters, Vegeta was instantly barraged with a slew of oaths as two warriors of substantial ki squabbled down the hallway.

"You _will_ tell me…"

"Radditz, Nappa, what is the meaning of this rather loud act of stupidity at this time of night?" asked the King with scorn, secretly filled with curiosity. Fights among his guards were common enough but Radditz and Nappa had always seemed to act civilly.

Nappa's back straightened as he turned to look at his King with barely concealed shock. With notable effort, Nappa lowered Radditz back to the ground and regained his characteristic hard as nails composure.

"My apologies, sire," Nappa uttered with a brisk bow but not before shooting a warning look at his unwilling partner in crime.

"Nappa, you are to leave immediately."

"But, sire—" Nappa began.

"No, if you can't behave like an Elite then I don't want to see you in this part of the palace again. As for you," Vegeta said, turning to the other warrior, "you will remain here and be sure that nothing disturbs my mate.

"Leave, Nappa. Now. Have my instructions not been clear enough?" Vegeta ordered the larger man.

"No, sire, of course not." Vegeta waited as Nappa quickly made his way down the hall.

* * *

"I hate him." Bulma growled out between her clenched teeth. "Vegeta, if you don't get your ass in here…" Her words cut off as her body was raked by another wave of contractions. "Fuck, you are never going to touch me again you filthy bastard of a monkey!" The words seemed to reverberate in the sterile make-shift birthing room and more than a few of the med techs flinched as their sensitive ears were accosted by endless streams of profanity.

"Eloquent as ever," noted Zarbon as he turned to the Saiya-jin King. "Bulma told me about a month ago that this sort of response was normal on her planet, but I have to say, it's much more amusing experiencing it in real life."

Vegeta grunted. He really wasn't worried about whether or not the onna was really swearing off of him. They both knew what the outcome of _that_ situation would be.

"Stupid egotistical ogre of a monkey!" Really, it was impressive that the sound managed to make it through the walls so clearly.

"The prospect of battling with Freeza looks less frightening by the minute…" commented Zarbon with a short chuckle. Vegeta glared at him darkly before making his way toward the medical ward door.

"Vegeta," Zarbon called, "cherish it. We only have so much time left." But by the time he tried to make eye contact with the King, he was already gone.


	39. chapter thirtyeight

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirty-Eight**

He had purple hair—no, worse, it was lavender. He couldn't complain about the eyes. After being mated to Bulma, the color blue had strangely grown on him. It didn't make any sense genetically, though. Weren't Saiya-jin genes always dominant? Well, it wasn't like he had so many other cross-species mixes as a reference anyway, he supposed. At least the Heir had a proper Saiya-jin tail. Part of him was greatly relieved to see he was Saiya-jin enough for that.

_My son._

Thought the Saiya-jin King as he reached his hand out to brush the hair out of Bulma's eyes. His hand was still sore from the birthing process. Just how was it that such a tiny Chikyuu-jin could squeeze so hard?

_Our son_.

Bulma corrected and managed to crack the faintest smile in spite of her apparent exhaustion.

"Onna, you look terrible," Vegeta said aloud. The med techs had already left; satisfied that their would-be queen was stable, and the infant adequately healthy. "I was under the impression that purple was unhealthy in newborns?" questioned Vegeta with only a slight tinge of disdain.

"And _I_ thought you were supposed to be intelligent. My father's hair is lavender, Vegeta, or have you forgotten already?" Vegeta smirked. If his mate was already insulting him then she couldn't be too badly injured. He would do anything to protect them, even if his son _appeared_ more human than Saiya-jin.

With a base ki like that though, no one would be foolish enough to mistake this child as anyone but their King's progeny.

Vegeta tentatively caressed his son's lavender hair and the child stirred.

"Careful, Vegeta. I'm sure you recall how long it took me to coax him into sleep in the first place," warned his mate. Did she really think that he could so easily forget the sickening gurgling noises and shrieks that the child had made before? He felt uncomfortable handling something so fragile. Though he had to admit that he'd been less than careful with his physical interaction with Bulma in the past and she was _much_ more breakable than the child that lay peacefully on his mother's chest.

_He has your eyes._

Bulma smiled up at the Saiya-jin no Ou. Commenting on something like that was practically an endearment when it came from Vegeta.

_Yes, he does._

* * *

Zarbon stared at the text on the screen as countless images of ancient Saiya-jin text scrolled across the page. He'd been searching for months, hopelessly trying to figure out what the trigger would be to push Vegeta to the level of the Legendary.

The stories were typically the same regardless of which continent he gathered the information from. Strangely, there were no records of an Elite or any other high class warrior breaking the monumental energy necessary for the transformation. It didn't make any sense, but it seemed that the Legendary was not attainable simply through an unreal amount of training or being born with a strong base ki.

Pointing in the same direction were several similar stories that claimed the original Legendary had ascended during a vicious war between the Saiya-jins and another native tribe that inhabited the dynamic planet. The other race, while slight and possessing no apparent ki abilities, was technologically quite advanced. The Saiya-jins were strong but few in number and lacked the ability to strategically defend themselves from their enemy's ruthless attacks.

It was during the culminating battle between the two races that the Legendary was first mentioned, though with many descriptive holes. At first, the Saiya-jins were losing and then soon afterwards, a Saiya-jin warrior appeared immersed in a gold aura, his blue eyes shimmering in the light created by the flaming buildings that surrounded him.

No one was really sure what happened after that. The story lacked in epic battles or individual duals. Every single account he could find claimed that the Legendary eventually destroyed himself though no one was sure why. Many believed that such an unimaginable power was impossible to control and that regardless of the mental and physical training the warrior possessed, the energy was overpowering. Zarbon considered this for a few moments.

Vegeta knew that self-destruction was a possible result of ascension and the advisor found it strange that the King would choose to disregard such information—regardless of his unquenchable ego. Indeed, such a power would rival even Freeza's, but there were other methods. What was Vegeta hiding? And more importantly, did it have something to do with the strange inter-dimensional transition that Bulma had told him about when she first appeared on Vegeta-sei?

* * *

"You know what must be done," the dulcet tones coming from the comm screen slithered their way through the room. "The child cannot be allowed to reach adulthood."

There was a pregnant silence as the Saiya-jin stared at the screen, torn between loyalty to his King and the necessity of betrayal.

"Do you need to be reminded what is at stake, you insolent monkey?" The warrior minutely shook his head in response. "I thought not."

"The child and the woman will be delivered as planned."

"Undamaged. Remember, we have a bigger fish to catch."

* * *

Bulma cooed at her child as she paced the length of the quarters she shared with Vegeta. It was amazing really, she reflected as she looked upon the face of her son. How was it that he could have lavender hair and blue eyes and still manage to look just like his father? The child grew so quickly. He'd only been away from the medical ward for a couple of weeks and his development had progressed significantly. Not that Bulma was particularly surprised—the Saiya-jin baby's appetite was ravenous, constantly waking her in the middle of the night for feedings.

Vegeta was gone for lengthy times during the day trying to negotiate with Dokar-sei. They were all beginning to fear that peace was not going to be a possibility and Vegeta-sei would indeed have to face war on two fronts. As far as Bulma knew, negotiations with Freeza had been relatively quiet since the Saiya-jin King's scuffle with the Ice-jin many months before. Even the eerie dreams Bulma had been having since she became mated to Vegeta had ceased. It was like the quiet before a storm and Bulma found herself fearing what the silence could mean more than the threat of the oncoming war itself.

But despite the Saiya-jin no Ou's other obligations, Vegeta still managed to spend time with his new family. Sometimes Bulma would walk into the room to find Vegeta standing over Trunks and whispering to him softly in his native tongue. She tried not to let on that she knew how important their son was to Vegeta—at least not that he was worth more than just an heir to the Saiya-jin King. She smiled to herself.

Guards were assigned to Bulma and the Saiya-jin Prince continuously now, and restrictions on entering the palace became greater in number by the day. Radditz was Bulma's near constant companion and she found herself becoming attached to the burly warrior. There was something soft and playful about him that the rest of the race seemed to lack.

"So, what's on the agenda for today, Radditz?" asked Bulma as she positioned Trunks more firmly against her hip.

"Well, as you know, Lady Bulma, you are restricted to the palace grounds for the time being," Radditz said in an apologetic tone, but when the woman didn't respond, he continued. "I know there have been some fascinating advances down in the engineering department about some data discovered around the time of your arrival."

"Really?" asked Bulma, her curiosity piqued.

"Yes, and I also believe they're ready to begin testing on the new armor proto-type you were working on before…" He trailed off.

"Yes, yes. They've been meaning to get to that for months. Earth or Vegeta-sei, nothing ever gets done without me there to hold those idiots' hands," Bulma commented to no one.

"Later in the day, I believe Vegeta also plans on making some sort of public announcement and requires your presence." Radditz raised his eyebrows in an attempt to draw information from his King's mate.

"Ever the curious one, aren't we?" responded Bulma with a sigh. "Only very few Saiya-jins know about Trunks, Radditz, as I'm sure you're aware. Vegeta wants to get me back into the public eye before anyone becomes suspicious. Saiya-jin pregnancies are shorter than Earth ones but after not seeing me for a few months rumors have a tendency to spread." She sat down on the bed and gently tapped Trunks on the nose, cooing and telling him how big and strong he was going to be—just like his daddy.

"Isn't it dangerous to wave you about though? Both of you are still so vulnerable," asked Radditz with genuine concern.

Bulma looked up from the bed with confusion in her eyes. "Vegeta would never do anything to risk either me or his son, Radditz." Her voice was firm. "I'm almost certain Vegeta plans to make the announcement over a public communications channel. Nothing formal or to be worried about." She was touched that the warrior cared, but there was something about his words that alarmed her.

"I'm sure you're right, Lady Bulma," was Radditz's only response.

* * *

"What should I wear tonight, Vegeta?" asked Bulma through her half shut closet door.

"Something that shows your rank," came the Saiya-jin no Ou's curt reply. Honestly, what sort of question was that? "Just choose something simple."

Vegeta stared at the velvet box in his hands and glanced over at the crib where his son lay, thankfully, in a peaceful sleep. There was still so much to consider. He no longer just had the safety of his planet to worry about; he had his family as well. The idea of having either his mate or his son taken by Freeza terrified him in an irrational way. How would he survive if he lost them?

_This is why it's so unwise to become mated_._ I never thought she'd be pulled into this too._

Thought the Saiya-jin King. He still wasn't sure what his feelings meant but he _did_ know that the fact that he had any at all made him vulnerable. He'd finally gotten over his initial anger when he realized how much the frail Chikyuu-jin meant to him, but dammit, Saiya-jins simply weren't wired to handle emotional overload.

Bulma finally exited the closet with a crimson dress in tow. She knew her clothing was starting to run a little to the goth side, especially when it came to her color choices, but Vegeta preferred her in the colors of his family crest. Anyway, while black or blood red were never Bulma's first color choices back on Earth, she enjoyed playing the part here. Wearing Vegeta's colors was like accepting a strange sense of ownership and Bulma found herself reveling in the idea of belonging to the rugged Saiya-jin King.

"Something wrong?" asked Bulma after a few moments of uncomfortable silence. Vegeta grunted. She took that as a 'no' and began talking about her day. "I was able to make it to the engineering ward today." Vegeta stared at her, obviously waiting for her to continue. "Did you know that your technology department picked up some sort of quantum interference signal right around the time we ended up on Vegeta-sei?" Bulma asked as she fidgeted with her dress. Vegeta's face went hard.

"No, I didn't," replied Vegeta.

"I just found it interesting since there was all that confusion about where I'd come from after Radditz found me," said Bulma offhandedly as she walked into the bathroom.

_She doesn't know._

"It got me thinking, though. What if what happened to us was a result of some improbable interdimensional glitch? I'm sure I could find a way to get us both back to Earth." Vegeta could hear the water in the bathroom running and was thankful that Bulma wasn't in the same room. She'd become inconveniently good at reading his emotions since her pregnancy and he was thankful she had other things to distract her.

_Back to Chickyuu…_

Did he even want to go back? He'd been given everything he wanted by some freak chance. And while it was obvious that there were certain dangers to keeping the child and the onna in this dimension, the thought of leaving…

He couldn't think about it. There were too many other things he had to deal with. Regardless, even if the onna did find a way to send them back to Chikyuu, the formation of such a device on her own would take months or even years. Freeza would grow impatient long before then.

"Vegeta?" asked Bulma, nearly startling the Saiya-jin King—their bond the only thing that prevented him from being completely caught off guard by her voice. "How do I look?"

Vegeta stared at Bulma as she stood before him, her hair pulled back to reveal the elegant length of her neck and the porcelain of her shoulders and breasts. She wore no adornments, but the deep red of the dress contrasted with her pale skin so dramatically that her skin almost glowed. Her eyes shimmered a liquid silver and Vegeta was reminded of the night back on Chikyuu when she'd accidentally absorbed his energy. Did she have any regrets? Did she think the energy and now, the child, were the only things that held her to him? Vegeta pushed the thoughts aside. What was wrong with him? She was his mate. That was all that mattered.

"I can change if you don't…" Bulma trailed off, sensing something strange from Vegeta but unsure of how to interpret it.

"I have something for you," said Vegeta, completely changing the subject and reaching for the velvet box he'd placed on a nearby table. He didn't want to look at her anymore. He needed just a few moments to sort out his thoughts. "It's very old, but my mother always wore it when I was a child."

Bulma carefully walked over to the Saiya-jin no Ou and sat beside him on the bed. Was he giving her a gift? Hadn't he given her enough? She thought and glanced over at Trunks.

Vegeta opened the box and took out the ring that was comfortably snugged in the satin holder. It was a ruby set in some strange metal that had the look of unpolished silver. Several black stones were arranged around the larger stone that shined curiously in the light. The overall look was strikingly delicate and Bulma mentally chastised herself for ever thinking that the colors of the House of Vegeta-sei's crest were goth.

The Saiya-jin no Ou's hands felt course as he slid the ring up Bulma's finger. He hadn't had enough interactions to know what such a moment signified on Earth but Bulma couldn't help but feel herself blush as her mate stared at her intensely.

"Vegeta, I—" but before Bulma could say anything Vegeta brushed his lips against hers sensually, gently rubbing his lips over her own.

"We must go now," was all he said before rising from the bed, the velvet box still in his hand. "Radditz will be at the door, so the child will not be disturbed." Vegeta offered his free hand to his mate and Bulma took the offered help tentatively, still in a daze after the confusion of their past few moments together.

"Come, we mustn't leave our people waiting."


	40. chapter thirtynine

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Thirty-Nine**

He'd forgotten how the stars looked from space, he mused, as they raced past the port hole on the tiny shuttle. After spending so many years on Vegeta-sei as an advisor, the memories of the missions he'd been sent on across the galaxy while under Freeza's rule had started to fade. It was a good thing he'd remained in the Ice-jin's good graces after all this time. Being a favorite certainly had its advantages. After all, without being in such a position, this mission would have been doomed for failure.

He tried not to let himself become preoccupied by the connections he'd found about the Legendary. Though he'd finally pieced together the missing link, he was positive that telling the King would in no way aid in his ascension. Not that he didn't think the powerful Saiya-jin no Ou could achieve this goal—he would have to, for all their sakes.

_Only an hour until we meet again, Lord Freeza._

* * *

Nappa paced the halls uncertainly before returning to his quarters and staring at his computer terminal. He'd been studying different ways to strategically attack Dokar-sei for hours and was becoming more confused by the moment. Since negotiations were out of the question at this point, Nappa couldn't understand what had driven the undeveloped race to enter such an obvious suicidal war in the first place. It was true that the Saiya-jins had been experiencing more problems with other systems in their empire as time elapsed, but none had been so bold as to challenge their rulers to outright war.

The people of Dokar-sei were rural and lived in a general state of underdevelopment and poverty. Frankly, they were lucky to even be considered an Associate World in the first place as their only asset was the fertility of their land. The Saiya-jins required a certain percentage of the products produced on the planet to be used for inter-planetary trade but this was a reasonable bargain when the alternative was being purged. Some of the more exotic fruits produced on Dokar-sei were even considered valuable commodities in dozens of systems. It was such a shame they would have to be destroyed, whether before or after the situation with Freeza escalated.

Nappa still didn't understand why Vegeta didn't just send a few lower class warriors to get the job done. It could all be over in a few hours. He'd been completely for wiping out the entire race until the human woman arrived. Noticing the differences in the King's behavior may have been a difficult endeavor, but Nappa had been studying him for years—testing him and eager to see if he would truly become the greatest monarch in Saiya-jin history. If anything, the old Vegeta had been cold and ruthless. The current Vegeta was so afraid of his own shadow that he'd made sure there were at least a handful of other more "trusted" Elites surrounding Nappa at all times. Personally, he found the idea of his own men guarding him laughable, but there was something hard about these men that made Nappa feel they were more dedicated to their King than he'd given them credit for. No matter, he'd been a commander for years, and there were always other ways to get what you wanted.

* * *

As the hours dragged by, Bulma found herself wondering just how long such a tedious conference could take. After the initial bliss at receiving a gift from Vegeta wore off, Bulma realized that she was in for a long night. She found it almost ridiculous that they were forced to sit on the solid stone thrones for so long just for a video conference with a few of the more influential nobles. But at the same time, she knew that her presence was necessary. They had to quench some of the lingering Saiya-jin suspicions and establish her as a permanent fixture beside their King.

Uncomfortable away from her son, Bulma began to think about her new family and the life they'd begun together on Vegeta-sei. Things were unstable in this dimension at best and such a lifestyle certainly wasn't ideal for the rearing of children.

Bulma glanced at her mate as he sat beside her, she wasn't being fair, she knew. This was what Vegeta had always wanted. And she was certain that his childhood while under Freeza was much more precarious than the one facing their son, who was currently safely guarded in the confines of the Saiya-jin palace. Vegeta was meant to be here. She couldn't imagine what he was going through. Having all of his dreams torn from him at such a young age, Kami, he must have been wishing for a moment such as this his entire life.

_I must seem so selfish. When I said I could find a way for us to go back before…_

She turned away, trying not to show the internal turmoil on her face or let any unnecessary emotions slip through her mental shield. While Vegeta handled many of her emotions well, Bulma was certain that this one was flavored with more pity than the proud Siaya-jin would care to taste.

It was a difficult decision. Now that she knew her appearance on Vegeta-sei had something to do with true interdimensional travel and that Kami wasn't just playing some sick joke on the two of them, finding a way back home became much simpler. If she could find a method that accurately tore through space time, and if she used the quantum data recorded at the time of her arrival, it was likely she could even use the same path that had gotten her here.

And what of Vegeta? Could she ask him to leave this place? Could she really ask him to leave everything behind for the sake of her and their child? Did she even know what she was asking?

Maybe there was a way to work things out without either of them having to sacrifice a part of themselves. As of now the choices were bleak: a dimension where her world didn't exist or a dimension without his. Neither sounded appealing.

Unsure of the reaction she would receive, Bulma slowly reached her hand out and placed it on top of Vegeta's. When the Saiya-jin no Ou gave no indication of displeasure, she marveled at how she hadn't sought some sort of small comfort from him before. Touching his warm skin always seemed to help clear her thoughts.

_The conference will be over soon, onna._

Said Vegeta mentally; obviously misinterpreting her gentle touch. If anything, what made her most eager to leave was her uncertainty at being separated from Trunks.

The ring Vegeta gave her glittered tantalizingly in the light and Bulma smiled. Everything would work out. She just knew it.

* * *

Vegeta pulled Bulma down an abandoned hallway. They hadn't been able to spend any time alone since the birth of their son. As the days stretched on, Vegeta felt gripped by a sense of desperation. The sensation was new to him, but at even the slightest thought of losing his mate or the child, the Saiya-jin King floundered. Things were just too quiet in the palace and he, as well as his advisors, believed that it was only a matter of days before the Ice-jin started enacting his plan. Indeed, the very fact that the Cold Empire hadn't already begun its attack on Vegeta-sei was confusing as hell. What were they waiting for?

At least the meeting with the nobles had gone relatively well. A few had looked upon Bulma with confusion. He had no idea what they suspected, but as there hadn't been any recent death threats, he couldn't imagine why any of them could be so shocked to see her. It was a good thing they hadn't waited any longer to reinsert her into the public eye.

"Where are we going?" asked Bulma as the Saiya-jin no Ou tugged her along.

"Somewhere we won't be disturbed." Vegeta smirked at the confused look on his mate's face. She would figure it out soon enough.

After going down several different corridors, Vegeta finally found the room he wanted and kicked the door in. Bulma stared at him and remained standing in the hallway, obviously still confused.

"It's one of the guest rooms." She peered into the darkness of the room. Vegeta took hold of her arm again and pulled her into the shadows, closing the door behind him. Vegeta pushed Bulma against the cold wood of the door. It was his only warning before he leaned in and forcefully pressed his lips against his mate's. They'd had time to couple since their son's birth but it had always been rushed. He wanted to savor her just once before…

"I want you." His voice was rough.

_Now._

The words reverberated in both their minds. Vegeta had practically shouted at her mentally. The action wasn't typical of the controlled Saiya-jin. As if shocked at his own words, Vegeta pulled away from his mate, turning away from her.

Bulma placed her hands on either side of the Saiya-jin King's face and turned him so he was facing her. Though the room was dark, the gold illumination of his eyes was bright and clear. His face was arrogant as ever, though his facade had slipped, he was determined not to let her know how affected he was. Bulma pressed herself against Vegeta's body and raised herself on her toes. Still staring into his eyes, she softly pressed her lips against Vegeta's before wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him more deeply. The result was soft and encouraging. She kissed him as if she'd been made only for that purpose.

"I love you." Her words were full of conviction as she looked intensely at the Saiya-jin King. There was no expectation in her voice, only honesty.

Vegeta stared at her for a few moments, obviously at a loss for words. He looked torn.

"I—"

"Don't say anything, Vegeta." Bulma placed her hand over her mate's mouth in understanding. "They're only words anyway."

Feeling less in control than he'd ever been in his entire life, Vegeta stared down at the weak creature before him. She was his mate, the mother of his son. She was beautiful and pure—untainted.

Bulma took Vegeta's hand and kissed his fingers one by one, looking into his eyes suggestively.

"Now, what was the reason you wanted to show me this room?"

Vegeta growled low in his throat and pulled his mate back against his body, running his had along the back of her gown to unclasp it. Once rid of the dress, the Saiya-jin no Ou picked Bulma up and walked her over to the bed.

The room hadn't been used in years, but the linens were new and soft. Staff made sure that all quarters were in working condition, regardless of their disuse. He unfastened his cape and pulled his breastplate over his head.

In mid motion, Vegeta abruptly stopped and turned his head toward the door, an alarmed look on his face.

"What's wrong?" asked Bulma, getting up off the bed and reaching for her discarded dress.

"Something has happened." He was silent for another few moments. Apparently, whatever was happening in the rest of the palace was a major cause for concern. "They're looking for us right now."

"We should go," Bulma said after sliding the gown over her naked body and working on the clasps.

Vegeta watched Bulma mournfully, his eyes lingering over her exposed skin.

"Yes. I fear this is something we would not wish to miss."

* * *

The room was empty, just as he knew it would be. Part of him wondered why the King placed so much faith in his guards. Granted, there were many more now that things had gotten ugly, but obviously the security he'd enacted wasn't enough protection for the Saiya-jin Heir. It was a good thing Zarbon wasn't there. With the trusted adviser mysteriously unavailable, the traitor's luck had risen infinitely.

The young prince lay peacefully in his crib, the gold bars little more than a minor deterrent for the abnormally strong newborn. Even at this tender age, the baby would have no trouble bending the metal. Feeling nostalgic, the traitor stared down at the child, wondering at how the King could ever have fathered something so delicate looking.

Sensing a high ki in the room, the child stirred in recognition of his soon-to-be kidnapper.

"You've always had your father's keen senses, haven't you, little one?" whispered the Saiya-jin in a humble voice. This child would be something to be proud of one day. The warrior shook his head, not allowing his thoughts to deviate from the task at hand.

A few dozen guards were posted throughout the royal wing of the palace and though escaping would be difficult to a level approaching impossibility, he knew that this was his last chance. It was so rare that Bulma was ever away from her son and with her in the room, stealing the child away would be impossible. The link between the earthling and the Saiya-jin King was so strong that no one would ever be foolish enough to harm her.

"How could he be here so soon?" Frantic voices could be heard from the hallway and the warrior glanced up, sure that his plan had been ruined.

"No, I must go meet with the council. With Freeza so nearby…" The Saiya-jin no Ou's voiced trailed off as the Saiya-jin traitor heard the King's mate try to convince her lover not to be too hasty.

"Stay with the child." The King's voice silenced the efforts of the woman and there was a command in his voice that never seemed to sit well with the Chickyuu-jin female.

More commotion came from the hallway as the guards followed their King, temporarily distracted. Bulma stood in the hallway for sometime after Vegeta left, her ki motionless. She must have been startled with all the chaos.

_Why would Freeza approach the Vegeta-sei system so soon?_

He tossed the thought away. It didn't matter. If Freeza was closer, that meant that it would be that much easier to get his target to the Ice-jin's ship without detection. And now that all the guards were frantically preparing for war, he had just the distraction he'd been waiting for. This was the right thing to do. The only thing to do.

The door handle began to turn, and from his concealed position the traitor could see Bulma's form perfectly silhouetted in the light coming from the hallway.

"Radditz?" Bulma whispered into the darkness of the room before closing the door behind her. She was quiet, hoping to avoid waking the sleeping child. The room was a perfect black.

"Where could he have…?" The Saiya-jin warrior approached her silently, Bulma's Chikyuu-jin senses no match for his Saiya-jin stealth.

_I didn't want to have to do this._

"Radditz, where—"

_I'm sorry._

Bulma collapsed.


	41. chapter forty

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Forty**

He couldn't say that the people on Freeza's ship were surprised to see him. As the front runner for the Ice-jin fleet, the ship was enormous—nearly the same size as some of the smaller stations Zarbon had stayed on before he found himself on Vegeta-sei. Naturally, such a large ship would have an advanced probing system.

The hailing screen came to life and Zarbon checked his scouter before activating the view channel.

"Saiya-jin vessel, what is the nature of your approach of Lord Freeza's ship?" The voice was monotone but slightly hostile. Whoever was on the other line had obviously had a bad encounter with Saiya-jins in the past.

"I'm certain Lord Freeza could always find time for an old companion, warrior," said Zarbon with obvious distaste in his voice. All the incompetent communications officer need done was check his view screen to realize that he was not a Saiya-jin.

"Master Zarbon," said the surprised communications officer. "My apologies. I didn't realize. I'll send Lord Freeza notice of your arrival immediately."

As the shuttle was pulled closer to Freeza's ship, Zarbon checked over the specs on his scouter one last time. The plan needed to work. If he could even buy them just a little more time then in the end it would be worth the sacrifice. Besides, diplomacy had always been his forte. Lying was practically second nature to him at this point.

"Please remain in your shuttle until we arrange for an escort," came the voice from his communications channel. His tone was reverent but contained a bit more curiosity than Zarbon cared for. There were already too many rumors circulating about the relationship Freeza and Zarbon had once had. No one understood Zarbon's reasons for leaving their master's service.

_If they only knew._

He didn't wish the things he'd been forced to see or do while under Freeza's rule upon anyone. Freeza had a reputation for training the most powerful fighters in the universe, but in the process many of them progressively lost their sanity. There was little trust between the more powerful beings under Freeza's rule. The Ginyuu Squad was a prime example. Besides, Zarbon preferred choosing loyalty over being threatened into it any day. The Saiya-jins may not have trusted him completely, but they sure as hell respected him. He was held in high esteem among the Saiya-jin King's close advisers, and though none of the Saiya-jins understood the relationship between the reptilian warrior and the Saiya-jin no Ou, they knew better than to express their distaste. He didn't blame them for feeling uncomfortable really. His power level was impressive by any standard, and since Vegeta was the only Saiya-jin strong enough to destroy Zarbon, their closeness left a sour taste in most of the warriors' mouths.

Zarbon waited patiently as two escorts arrived to lead him to the bridge. The warriors were relatively powerful and Zarbon found it strange that Freeza would arrange for such strong chaperones. It was no matter really, though the warriors' ki readings put together outranked his own, he was confident that if it became necessary, he would be able to take them down. He'd spent the last several decades training with the most powerful entities in the universe. By comparison, these warriors were laughable.

Though he perceived the men had been sent as a warning, Zarbon didn't let the threat jeopardize his plan. He needed to figure out who the traitor was and stall while Vegeta found time to organize the armies and set their strategy in motion. Very few people on Vegeta-sei would even realize that he was gone by this point and even if they had, no one would suspect anything. Zarbon frequently visited the different regions of Vegeta-sei on diplomatic missions or to continue the extended research he'd been doing on the Legendary over the past few months. There was no way the traitor could have relayed his absence to Freeza within such a short period of time.

The ship was just as he remembered it. Men walked briskly from one location to another clicking buttons on their scouters or talking about some recent sparring match. The halls were lined with bare metal. Overall, the feeling he got from the entire scene was cold and detached. Yes, it was exactly as he remembered it.

"Master Zarbon." Two men he vaguely remembered stood guard outside the main doors to the bridge. "Lord Freeza is awaiting you." The men stepped aside and the doors slid open revealing a large dome shaped room. Zarbon stepped onto the bridge and smiled as he remembered how much time he'd spent in the spherical brain of the ship. The stars glowed faintly through the clear polymer that composed the walls and ceiling of the command center. Watching the stars race by from this place had been one of his most cherished past times while under Freeza's command. It was strange how times had changed.

"Zarbon, my pet." Freeza floated towards the reptilian warrior in his hover chair. His purplish black lips were turned up in a genuine smile. "What warrants such a visit? It's been years since we've seen you on this ship." Freeza still sounded pleasant but Zarbon could tell that the Ice-jin was obviously not pleased with Zarbon's neglect.

"My apologies, Lord Freeza. As you know, the duties King Vegeta has placed on me have been quite time consuming as of late."

"Yes. And how is my favorite monkey king these days?" asked Freeza with blatant displeasure. The Ice-jin turned from Zarbon and made his way closer to the edge of the room, staring out into the expanse of space. "Why are you here, Zarbon?" Freeza's voice was quiet, deadly.

"They know about your spy." Freeza remained silent.

"And?" Freeza's voice was unimpressed. The tone could mean any number of things but Zarbon was counting on Freeza's curiosity working in his favor.

"How do you think he's gone undetected for so long?" Freeza turned back and faced Zarbon.

"Are you implying that _you_ had something to do with his success, my slippery friend?" Freeza's eyes were hard. Zarbon knew that he was walking a fine line but there was still a small spark of interest in the Ice-jin's eyes.

"I think I'm doing more than implying, don't you?"

* * *

Vegeta walked through the halls with a sense of determination. So it had begun. It was better now than ever. They were prepared, and though Zarbon hadn't been able to stall the Ice-jin the way they'd hoped, if everything went according to plan then, in the very least, he had a trustworthy spy infiltrating the enemy flag ship. Zarbon's scouter had been specially programmed to record everything that took place regardless of the other functions it was serving at the time.

With all of the chaos the palace had been thrown into upon Freeza's arrival, it seemed like the entire planet had been consumed in a physical and mental storm. The mental shields Vegeta had had to erect as soon as Freeza's approach had been recorded were some of the strongest he'd ever had to use. He was already focusing so much attention on coordinating their forces that the additional mental strain was making his head throb.

Perhaps Freeza hadn't had a more sinister purpose in mind. The Cold Empire was vast and just as the Saiya-jins needed to maintain the worlds under their control, the Ice-jin shared the same responsibilities. Of course, Freeza's responsibilities leaned more towards conquering new worlds than maintaining them, but he did have other obligations. Could the Ice-jin just have been preoccupied with their other intergalactic conquests? Vegeta didn't know. The situation still made him feel uneasy.

He needed to send someone to check on the onna. When they'd arrived at the royal wing there had been several dozen guards but he hadn't seen Radditz and Vegeta was certain that many of the guards had been pulled away for other duties.

_Dammit_.

Thought Vegeta with a sudden sinking sense of realization. He let a few of his mental shields down and powered up. He needed to get back to their quarters immediately. How could he be so foolish? Freeza wasn't preoccupied at all; he'd been waiting for Vegeta to fall into a false sense of security. All he needed were just a few minutes where Vegeta dropped his guard—and Vegeta had just given them to him.

_Fuck, this must have been that bastard's plan all along._

He walked up to the nearest comm screen in alarm and punched in the command for the central communications room.

"Stop all shuttles from leaving the planet immediately," he ordered, trying to remain calm for the sake of the people around him.

"Yes, sir." The screen went blank.

The effort was too late. They were already gone, he could feel it. Wherever Bulma was, she was unconscious for the time being. He could sense her, but only just barely. Trunks was with her as well, but appeared to be completely unharmed.

This was the situation he'd been dreading all along. It was the culmination of his worst fears, and there was only one way it could end.

* * *

When Bulma awoke she was lying on a hard cot and staring at a metal ceiling. Instantly struck with panic, she sat up and looked around the room. Her head throbbed slightly but it was nothing to be concerned about. As the seconds passed, the pain started to alleviate and Bulma tried to remember what had transpired back in the palace.

Freeza's ship had moved closer to Vegeta-sei and she'd been sent back to the royal wing of the palace to check on Trunks. Radditz was supposed to be watching over the baby but when she'd gotten there, he was gone. After that, she couldn't remember anything.

Well, wherever she was, she was not on Vegeta-sei and the gentle drum of electronics and some sort of engine made her think she was on a ship. Kami, was she on her way to Freeza's head quarters at this very moment? She was overcome by an instant sensation of terror. Memories of Namek flooded her thoughts and Bulma quickly made her way to the sink in the corner of the small room.

After emptying the entire contents of her stomach and rinsing out her mouth, Bulma took a deep breath. It would be alright, Vegeta had to know what had happened by now and was probably altering their plans to account for her abduction. Bulma's eyes widened.

_Trunks!_

If the traitor had abducted her then it followed that her son had been taken as well. There was a soft murmur from the other end of the room and Bulma turned her head. Walking over to the source of the noise, she sighed in relief.

_Oh, thank Kami_.

Whoever had kidnapped them had the decency to put them in the same room together. Trunks's demeanor was peaceful and Bulma found it strange that he would react so calmly to the situation. Usually, the boy was exceedingly perceptive of danger.

Bulma picked up her son and sat down on the small cot. What were they going to do? Vegeta still hadn't been able to make the transition to the level of Super Saiya-jin and though his heightened powers were impressive, they were not nearly sufficient to defeat the horrific powers the Ice-jin possessed. All she could do was hope that the stress of the situation would induce whatever trigger the Saiya-jin no Ou needed for ascension.

"_The shuttle will begin docking in five minutes._" The sudden sound of the computerized voice made Bulma jump.

She was torn between the necessity of faith in her mate and the fatalism that was slowly coming over her. Goku was not here to save them this time. And Vegeta… what would happen if he was killed again? A battle between the Saiya-jin King and the Ice-jin Emperor was almost inevitable and Bulma was reminded of the dreams that had plagued her since the formation of her bond with Vegeta.

The door to her room slid open and a large figure stood obscured in the artificial light coming from the hallway. As the man approached, Bulma paled.

"_You_… It was _you_?"

* * *

Zarbon remained on the bridge as Freeza changed their destination to orbit Vegeta-sei. He wasn't sure what the Ice-jin had planned but he knew that whatever was going on, it was working in the creature's favor. At least temporarily, the Ice-jin believed Zarbon had some sort of connection to his spy. Freeza had never outright asked Zarbon the identity of the traitor but he got the sense that Freeza was indulging himself more than anything. Regardless of the game Freeza was playing, he would never be inclined to destroy Zarbon on a whim. The Ice-jin was more egotistical than the reptilian warrior. Freeza could destroy Zarbon with little effort at any moment and he knew it.

The two stood staring out at the stars rushing by and discussed some of the interesting, according to Freeza, moments they had shared before Zarbon left. The topics leaned toward the more brutal crusades the reptilian warrior had participated in and Zarbon found himself sickened by the atrocities he'd been forced to commit. How many innocents had he destroyed? He could spend the rest of his life not having to look into a child's eyes as he blasted them again. He'd always been one of the quicker purging team members; unwilling to let his victims suffer regardless of the delight many of the other men found in torturing their weaker prey. Sometimes he thought he'd never be able to forget the sound of their screams.

Freeza had destroyed Zarbon's planet when he was very young and Zarbon was spared only because of the impressive ki abilities he'd been born with. Most members of his species were weak though widely known for their beauty. What few members of Zarbon's race still existed were circulating the galaxy as sex slaves or concubines. The thought sickened him. He'd never enjoyed serving the Ice-jin Emperor but regardless of it all, the training and knowledge he'd acquired during his years of service were irreplaceable. Zarbon knew and accepted that Freeza's fascination with him was only because of his beauty and ki abilities. Zarbon was, as his nickname indicated, just Freeza's 'pet'.

After several years, Zarbon had found solace and balance, ironically, with the Saiya-jins and particularly their young prince. When he'd met the Saiya-jin royal family on a diplomatic mission, Zarbon had seen his chance for escape. After a few days of observation, Zarbon had come to the conclusion that while the former King Vegeta was ruthless, he would never force him to wipe out billions of lives in the pursuit of his own greed. Discipline and punishment were necessary, but rarely needed to be extended to needless torment. That was something Freeza would never understand.

None of these thoughts passed over Zarbon's face as he laughed and 'reminisced' with the Ice-jin. From an outside perspective he must have seemed nostalgic and eager to share old war stories. Zarbon felt nauseated. Yes, there were many reasons why he'd left Freeza.

"Lord Freeza, you have visitors." The comm screen blinked to life and Freeza smiled.

"By all means, send them in."

Zarbon wasn't sure who the Ice-jin was expecting, but turned to face the door as it slid open. As the visitors entered, Zarbon tried not to let his surprise register at all on his face. The situation was worse than he'd anticipated.

"Radditz, how delightful to see you again," said Zarbon before the situation could get ugly. "I see you've completed your mission as planned."

The Saiya-jin warrior stood askance for a few moments, obviously unsure of how to interpret Zarbon's presence on the Ice-jin vessel, and then pushed Bulma into the room forcefully. The weaker woman stumbled and barely caught herself as she balanced only a few feet before Zarbon and the smiling Ice-jin.

"Well, isn't this a beautiful little reunion?" commented Freeza with obvious amusement. The discomfort of others had always been one of his indulgences.

Bulma stood silent, feeling too shocked and betrayed to make any meaningful comments. Zarbon watched as she stared at him with obvious hatred and resentment. They were right not to tell her. The honesty of her reactions would work in his favor.

"The Earthling woman and child at the same time. Impressive," Freeza said with pleasure. "Bulma, isn't it?"

But the stubborn Chikyuu-jin refused to answer him as she continued to wish Zarbon dead with her eyes.

"Tsk. My my, she has quite the fascination with you, doesn't she, my pet?" asked the creature and then laughed.

"You son of a bitch, why did you do it?" she spat and slapped Zarbon across the face, knocking his scouter off in the process. The hit was harder than he'd anticipated and Zarbon grabbed Bulma's wrist, squeezing enough for her to know that he was serious.

"Because I could." Zarbon hated his words but knew that if he was going to remain believable he had to hurt Bulma initially. It didn't matter anyway, Vegeta would know who the traitor was by now and the first part of their plan was completed. Having Bulma show up was disastrous, but it was better that this had happened after Zarbon arrived. He was certain this little drama would cause Freeza to at least partially believe his story.

"Vegeta is going to kill all of you," she threatened with more conviction than Zarbon knew the small female held within her. In the end, he had to force himself to laugh normally.

"Take her to her quarters. I'm sure our monkey king will be eager to see her," Freeza ordered Radditz. Apparently he hadn't enjoyed the Earthling's monologue. "As you know, I've arranged quite the show for him."


	42. chapter fortyone

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Forty-One**

Vegeta couldn't believe he'd let himself fall into the Ice-jin's trap. After checking the logs of shuttles leaving the planet around the time of Freeza's arrival, they'd picked up a pod with a jamming signal just as it left orbit. Freeza's ship was barely on the outskirts of the Vegeta-sei system by then. He wasn't sure where Freeza had been in the intermediate months, but he was beginning to get the feeling that the Cold Empire was behind some of the more difficult problems they'd been having with their Associate Worlds.

Freeza would most certainly use Vegeta's family as bait to trap him. One of the reasons he hadn't reacted overly adverse when he'd accidentally bonded to the Chikyuu-jin female was because he knew that Freeza was dead. Yes, the Ice-jin had been the primary source of his discomfort in forming any sort of relationship with anyone, but once he was dead there was less to fear. But in this time and this dimension… He didn't even want to imagine what the bastard could be doing to his mate right now. She had a strong spirit and Freeza delighted in breaking the bold; as if he needed some other sick way to fulfill his power trips and obscene fetishes.

Guilt settled in Vegeta's stomach. This never would have happened if he hadn't tried to operate the device without using the proper equipment to test it first. Dr. Briefs had warned him about the glitches that still needed to be fixed within the damn thing.

Overcome with guilt after Bulma's confession, he'd tried to tell her about his involvement in their interdimensional travel the night before, but things had gone so horribly wrong.

_God dammit._

He swore mentally. He should have known this would happen.

_Fuck._

Vegeta massaged his temples as he walked the halls. It didn't matter anymore; he would do what he had to do to save his family. He couldn't let this happen again.

The Saiya-jin no Ou made his way back to his quarters and sat down at the desk, accessing the communications center on his private computer. Zarbon must have had something to report by now. Hopefully he'd encountered Bulma and his son.

He glanced around the room. There was no sign of struggle and though he knew that there wouldn't be, it still set him ill at ease. If Bulma had been in distress he should have sensed it immediately. Whoever the traitor was, he was close enough that Bulma didn't feel threatened while in his presence.

Trying not to let a sense of panic overwhelm him, Vegeta opened the program that would allow him to access Zarbon's scouter transmissions. They'd had to use a special dispersing code to prevent the recordings from being detected.

At first there was nothing of consequence, Zarbon and Freeza were talking and Vegeta cringed internally as he listened to them share tales about the more gruesome moments they'd shared together. Things were obviously just as bad in this dimension as they had been in his own, and Zarbon had experienced it first hand. No wonder he'd decided to join the Saiya-jins.

After a few moments, Freeza changed their course for Vegeta-sei and then almost immediately following, things got interesting.

Vegeta couldn't believe what he was seeing.

_Radditz?_

* * *

The walk to Bulma's quarters was a long and silent one. She couldn't believe what she was witnessing. The two people she'd grown most comfortable with and trusted the most while suffering through this Kami-forsaken alternate reality had betrayed her. She supposed she should have expected Radditz all along, but Zarbon? He was Vegeta's most trusted confidant.

Something was suspicious about him anyway. Zarbon had looked more than surprised when she slapped him. And after spending so much time around him during the past months she found it difficult to accept that he could so easily betray the man he'd sworn fealty to over ten years before. The Saiya-jin King trusted Zarbon more than any other man under his command. It was ironic, considering Zarbon was not of Saiya-jin origin and had worked under Freeza for so many years. Obviously, the relationship between the two had to have a deep foundation if Vegeta had overcome these impressive sources of bias. If Vegeta trusted Zarbon, it meant something. _She_ was the one who had trusted Radditz—a sentiment that Vegeta had never particularly shared.

Radditz held Bulma's left arm loosely as he escorted her down the metal hallway. His posture and silence said more about his current disposition than any questions Bulma could have asked. He hadn't hurt her or her son through the whole ordeal but his betrayal was enough to completely change her opinion about him. Regardless of her overwhelming sensation of anxiety, there was more going on here than Bulma knew. Radditz's betrayal had probably been a long time coming, but if he were truly evil he wouldn't seem so torn.

The doors to Bulma's quarters slid open and Trunks was lying in his crib, still asleep. They had to have given him a sedative because it was unlike him to be so calm when his mother was this worried. Concerned for her son's safety, Bulma rushed over to Trunks' makeshift crib to be sure he was breathing properly.

"They won't harm him," said Radditz from the doorway. "He's too valuable."

Bulma turned her head to look at the burly warrior. Seeing him in such a situation was strange and she wasn't sure how to take his comment.

"He would have been less in harm's way if we were still on Vegeta-sei, don't you think?" replied Bulma rather scathingly. She threw him a reproachful glance and picked up the sleeping baby. Radditz wasn't allowed to make any indication that he cared now that he was the reason Freeza had gotten a hold of them in the first place.

Radditz stared into Bulma's eyes searchingly. She wasn't sure what he was looking for but forgiveness was certainly not something she was willing to concede. In the end, she was sure Radditz would be one of Vegeta's first kills during this bloody war. Nothing she could say would change that and at the moment she was running short on motivations for protest anyway. He'd endangered the King's mate and their child, an unforgivable offense in not only Vegeta's eyes, but Bulma's as well.

The scouter Raddtiz was wearing blinked to life and Bulma watched as he received some sort of order over the headset. After their communication was complete, Radditz turned back to her.

"For your own safety, please do not leave these rooms. I will be back to provide you with a meal and any other amenities you are lacking." He looked at her one more time and then walked out the door.

Bulma stood silent in the middle of the large living space. What she had assumed would be a small room for prisoners was actually a large apartment with an additional bedroom and bathroom. There were a few plants scattered across the rooms to add color along with the occasional mirror. While the space wasn't exactly homey, it wasn't as cold as the rest of the ship either.

Had these rooms been anything like the one's Vegeta had stayed in while he was forced to serve his Ice-jin lord? She wasn't sure. The rooms must have been decorated in such a manner only to relieve the dead sensation the rest of the ship gave off. She made her way to the view portal and stared at the expanse of space. Had Vegeta stood at this very window and felt just as helpless as she did?

_Vegeta-sei must be on the other side of the ship._

Thought Bulma in disappointment. It didn't really matter anyway. Whether they were orbiting her lover's planet or on the other side of the galaxy, the situation was still unbearably precarious. She shook her head and glanced down at her son. He'd woken since Radditz left and his large blue eyes stared up at her fixedly, his brows knit together in frustration.

_Kami, he looks so much like Vegeta._

So much had changed in the past year. How long had they been gone from their own dimension? Did her parents wonder about their strange disappearance? When they got back (she refused to use the word "if"), what would they think of her new family? Would they accept Vegeta the way she did? And what of Yamcha? It seemed like ages since she'd last thought of him.

The ring on Bulma's left hand glittered in the light coming from the porthole. On Earth, it was the sort of gift that symbolized a serious commitment. It was funny really, Earth customs seemed foolish and transitory to her now. She didn't blame Vegeta anymore for his more derogatory observations about Earth customs. Her bond with Vegeta was stronger—more powerful—than anything Earth had to offer. She was the Saiya-jin no Ou's life. That meant a hell of a lot more than saying "I do". She smiled.

How could she have ever doubted him? He would win this. He had to. It was his destiny.

* * *

Zarbon sat on the plush chair in his quarters. Since he'd left Freeza's service decades earlier, the Ice-jin had hardly changed anything about his rooms. Not that Freeza's flunkies had ever really been able to completely change their living spaces. Personal touches meant that the warriors had formed emotional attachments and led to them thinking that they had worth as individuals. In the Cold Empire, anyone was disposable. Having nothing to call your own reaffirmed this notion everyday.

Bulma still didn't know that Zarbon was acting as the Saiya-jin King's spy but he wasn't sure if or when he should tell her. He would keep her safe but she needed to feel vulnerable in order for things to work smoothly. He had no doubt that the Ice-jin was going to use her to bait the Saiya-jin no Ou. Hopefully he could temper the severity of her treatment.

The situation was uncannily similar to the first time he'd encountered the Saiya-jins. Zarbon was sure that Vegeta knew about what transpired even though he'd only been a few months old at the time. Almost thirty years ago, the former Saiya-jin King and his wife had been invited to Freeza's headquarters. The Saiya-jin Empire had been expanding rapidly then, and Freeza feared that left unchecked they would establish a reign that would rival his own. Having never dealt directly with Freeza's ruthlessness before, the royal couple had no way to anticipate the Ice-jin's heartless actions. King Vegeta was eventually forced to align himself with the Ice-jin family and kneel to the Cold Empire's throne.

It was only a few years after that, when Freeza heard about the prophecy, that Chikyuu had been destroyed as well.

He shut his eyes. Everyday he wished for nothing more than to forget. He couldn't even imagine what it had been like for Vegeta—the Saiya-jin no Ou had more than likely lived without a mother in both dimensions; ignorant of the torture his father had been put through. And now that Bulma was here he hoped he could prevent history from repeating itself.

Zarbon approached his comm screen. They had to be watching him; he would be surprised if Freeza decided to trust him so quickly. Regardless, Freeza's vanity was working in Zarbon's favor. Zarbon's power was impressive, but as long as he showed Freeza that he was pleased to be back in his presence then the Ice-jin wouldn't give his story another thought. Freeza's was amazingly complacent.

The comm screen blinked on and Zarbon found himself looking at the lizard's face.

"We are now orbiting Vegeta-sei. Bring the Earthling." The comm screen closed. Freeza's brevity wasn't entirely out of character. The Ice-jin did enjoy hearing himself speak, but considering they were more than likely about to ransom the Saiya-jin King's family, Freeza was lacking patience.

_He always did love putting on sick little shows._

He hadn't heard from Radditz since their meeting on the bridge but Zarbon wasn't overly concerned. Radditz hadn't said anything to Freeza, but from what Zarbon could tell, the Saiya-jin wasn't enjoying himself.

The situation had escalated and things were about to get much worse. He couldn't let Bulma know yet. Freeza wanted her terrified and though Zarbon was sure she would be a phenomenal actress, there was something to be said about genuine terror. All Zarbon could hope was that Freeza wouldn't take things as far as he had last time he'd dealt with the Saiya-jin royalty.

* * *

Vegeta watched his screen in horror as Bulma was dragged into the room. Freeza's ship had finally moved from the outskirts of their system to orbit Vegeta-sei. Almost immediately he'd begun transmitting this twisted show on all of Vegeta-sei's public channels. He wasn't sure what Freeza was trying to achieve. The nobles already knew about her, and though she was an alien whose very existence tainted the royal family's blood line, all had sworn fealty. They didn't have to be happy about it. Still, anyone who knew the prophecy knew that she was their only chance.

Bulma stood facing the camera, her silver-blue eyes calm as Freeza began to speak.

"People of Vegeta-sei, King Vegeta has violated the treaty established between the Cold Empire and the former Saiya-jin King thirty years ago by taking a human mate." Freeza paused for a moment before lashing out unexpectedly at Bulma, slicing through her clothing and her skin while exposing her back. Bulma cried out in pain and fell to her knees, her hands pressed against the cold tile of the floor as she took in labored breaths. "Turn her," Freeza said to a voice off screen. There was a brief pause and then Radditz appeared.

Vegeta growled as the large Saiya-jin warrior turned his mate forcefully so that her back faced the camera. Between the tattered bits of clothing it was easy to make out the aqua color of Vegeta's burn mark. It pulsed with an eerie glow in the dim lighting of Freeza's ship.

"As you can see, we even have the proof, thanks to one of your own." Freeza smiled at that last. Radditz's betrayal had provided him with the leverage he needed to strike while the Saiya-jin King was vulnerable. Vegeta was revolted by the fact that a Saiya-jin would willingly betray his homeworld.

He_ will be one of the first to die._

Thought Vegeta. How many hours of every day had Radditz spent with Bulma and Trunks? Though Vegeta had never completely trusted the warrior, the strange affection he seemed to have for Vegeta's family had led him to feeling a certain amount reliance on the lower class guard.

What was Freeza hoping to gain from all of this? Was he just trying to humiliate Vegeta publicly?

"And Vegeta no Ou, let's not forget your half-breed son."

The Saiya-jin people didn't know about the child, but he'd only been hidden in order to prevent what was happening right now. If the prophecy was right, the boy was destined to ascend and was therefore important for all Saiya-jins.

"Don't you dare touch him, you bastard," whispered Bulma, her eyes defiant as Zarbon walked into view with Trunks in his arms. Freeza gave Radditz a look and the warrior backhanded Bulma across the face. This time, she didn't make a sound. Vegeta's eyes hardened but then he turned his attention back to the reptilian warrior who was holding his son.

_Zarbon hasn't told her yet._

He found it curious but didn't let himself become preoccupied. Zarbon was his only chance at getting the two of them off of Freeza's ship. In such a circumstance, Vegeta would let Zarbon do what he thought was necessary.

"The punishment for the violation of this particular treaty is severe. As a subordinate empire, the Vegeta-sei system can decide to either turn over its power completely to the Cold Empire by eliminating its monarchy or let their star system be destroyed." Freeza smirked. He was definitely enjoying himself. "We will give you a few hours to make your decision." The channel went blank.

Freeza was mistaken if he thought that the Saiya-jin people would choose either of those options without fighting first. If Vegeta didn't do something, he was sure that the planet would end up being destroyed. The impressive power that Freeza possessed made it so that he could turn Vegeta-sei into dust without a thought. What use was an army of warriors if the Ice-jin could just blast through them all? And after considering how much time he had already stalled in his plan to conquer the Saiya-jins, Vegeta was sure that Freeza was eager to see the situation resolved. The Saiya-jins were too much of a threat now that the prophecy could be fulfilled.

Vegeta rested his head in his hands and looked away from the screen. The thought of having his planet destroyed in yet another dimension angered the Saiya-jin no Ou. He couldn't finally get the chance to reclaim his destiny only to have the same tragic outcome. He wouldn't let it happen—not again.

The Saiya-jin no Ou walked to one of his windows and looked up at the night sky. Somewhere orbiting the planet, his mate and child were waiting for him to make his decision. He knew what he had to do.


	43. chapter fortytwo

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Forty-Two**

Bulma laid face down on her bed, her arms pressed against her sides. The gashes in her back were not very deep, but they stung with an irritating intensity. This was the only relatively comfortable position she could find that didn't exacerbate the pain created by her wounds. Her right cheek was still sore from where Radditz had struck her, but she was surprised that he hadn't hit her more forcefully. It didn't seem like any of her bones were fractured or broken.

Lying there, Bulma couldn't help but analyze the situation. She knew that she was only kept alive as a source of leverage against the Saiya-jin King. The threat of her being tortured would definitely make Vegeta vulnerable. All the plans the Saiya-jin army had been working on for the past year would now be void. A direct attack wasn't possible as Bulma and Trunks could be killed in the process. And if Bulma died, it was likely that Vegeta wouldn't survive their bond being broken.

Trunks was quiet in his crib. Radditz had made sure that the child wasn't as sedated, but right now Bulma was thankful that she didn't have to fuss over the needy baby. Maybe if she thought about it, she could come up with a plan to help her mate. She may not have had super-human strength, but Bulma had never been the sort of girl just to sit back and let the boys go on without her.

Vegeta would, without a doubt, come to the ship at Freeza's request. Not to say that the King wasn't establishing a contingency plan. Regardless, the way things were coming to pass, the Saiya-jin no Ou would have to completely defeat Freeza if he wanted to keep Bulma and Trunks alive.

The door to Bulma's quarters slid open and she looked up from the bed. Unfortunately, from where she was lying, she couldn't see who had entered. In all likelihood, it was Radditz.

"Comfortable?" asked a familiar reptilian voice.

Bulma turned her head so that she was facing the person who had just entered. It had been nearly a year since she met the creature, but she was still taken aback by his beauty almost every time she saw him.

"Not that it matters to you," said Bulma, narrowing her eyes.

Zarbon gave Bulma a stern look and then smiled.

"Do you remember when you first came to Vegeta's pathetic little planet?" Zarbon sat down in the chair beside Bulma's bed and crossed his legs, adjusting his cape so that it lay smoothly across the back of the chair. His expression was condescending and Bulma wondered how she could have thought he might have been acting before.

"Of course I do," she said indignantly.

Zarbon snorted—it was a very Saiya-jin gesture. Bulma was a little surprised.

"You couldn't even put up a proper mental shield," said Zarbon but this time he looked her right in the eyes. His expression was hard and mocking, but his eyes were not. Bulma furrowed her brows as a strange sense of realization struck her.

_Did Vegeta send you here?_

She thought without changing her expression of hatred and confusion. It was unlikely Vegeta had sent him, she knew, but it was even more unlikely that Zarbon would so easily betray the Saiya-jin King.

"Yes, it's quite amusing. And here you are, damaged by what accounts to Lord Freeza as little more than a love tap." Zarbon continued to look at Bulma intensely though his mannerisms and voice were disdainful. Bulma was sure that he'd heard her and answered indirectly.

"Why are you here?" she asked in a feeble voice.

_Is Vegeta on his way?_

"King Vegeta will be here in a few hours. And though I'd love to gloat, Lord Freeza sent me to check on your wounds." Zarbon sighed and rolled his eyes. He made the task sound like it was below him.

_Where is Radditz?_

"Apparently your ape of a Saiya-jin escort wasn't playing the obedient baby sitter well enough." Zarbon examined his nails for a few moments in boredom and then looked up at Bulma.

_They're monitoring you constantly, aren't they?_

"There's an escort outside this room waiting to take us to the medical ward. Since your body is incapable of healing itself in a timely fashion, it appears we will be assisting you." Zarbon again let his voice become full of contempt. There was no way that he could have answered four questions consecutively simply out of coincidence. It wasn't like he'd hurt her or Trunks while he'd been here, right?

_Thank you._

Bulma closed her eyes and turned her head away.

Vegeta must not have wanted her to know that Zarbon was spying for him. If she'd known any sooner she might have done something to give him away. She could forgive him of the things he'd said and done. If his actions led to her protection then it was worth it in the end.

Zarbon stood up and brushed off his clothing. He grabbed her arm to help her up, but the grip was surprisingly loose and soft. He brushed the underside of her arm reassuringly with his thumb. The angle made it so that the action would be hidden from the view of the surveillance cameras.

"You can either walk or be dragged," said Zarbon indifferently. "And these men will not be as gentle as Radditz."

* * *

Nappa smiled. Really, it was too perfect. Freeza would eliminate that weakling bitch Vegeta had been pining over and then they could go to war. Freeza was strong but he'd only brought the one ship, and while its size was impressive, there were only so many warriors that could fit on such a vessel. On Vegeta-sei, there were millions of Saiya-jins.

Besides, Vegeta was the strongest Saiya-jin King they'd had yet and though Freeza's power was great, if Vegeta ascended it would be like a child's game. He had to take action, and if the Saiya-jin King wouldn't start the fight, he would do it himself.

* * *

No one knew that he'd left yet—not even his advisors. With Freeza so close, all of their plans were ruined. Freeza's ultimatum had infuriated most of the nobility and it was likely that this had been Freeza's intent when he made the broadcast over the planet's public channels. If the Saiya-jin warriors were riled up, they were more likely to make a careless attack.

He had to act now if he wanted to prevent Vegeta-sei's destruction. The Saiya-jins were too proud for their own good. He knew. He'd lived through it before. If they faced Freeza, they would all die.

_This is the only way._

The stars raced past the port hole of the tiny Saiya-jin pod. Taking such a small ship was the only way he'd managed to leave the planet undetected. He'd constructed a rather complicated jamming signal, but with the Saiya-jin military on alert, such a signal would only work for a very small vessel. He was going to have to find some other way to get Bulma and his son off of Freeza's ship. Zarbon was going to have to be responsible for that.

Freeza wanted Vegeta dead, but there was no way it was going to end without some sort of battle. In the other dimension, Freeza had constantly tried to goad Vegeta into striking the first blow. He'd never been successful. In this dimension, Freeza seemed to have the same plan, but since Vegeta was not directly under the Ice-jin's control, he had to resort to other means.

It was likely Freeza was the one responsible for all of the problems the Saiya-jins were having with their Associate Worlds. Dokar-sei was just one of dozens of planets that had rebelled. Freeza must have been threatening them for years, testing their loyalty to the Saiya-jin Empire.

As the small shuttle neared the Ice-jin flagship, Vegeta received a hailing signal.

"King Vegeta, how pleasant," said Freeza, his voice oozing satisfaction. "I didn't expect such an expedient response."

Vegeta snarled, flashing his impressive Saiya-jin canines at the screen. Freeza laughed.

"Oh, this is going to be fun." The screen went blank and Vegeta stared at the space where Freeza's image had been. His heart was hammering loudly in his chest. He vaguely wondered if Bulma's mark was pulsing erratically to the same rhythm.

Despite the desperation he felt at being able to see his mate and child, Vegeta felt calmer than he ever had before. When he'd gone before the Ice-jin in the past, he had always been torn in different directions. The only thing that focused him was his hatred for the tyrant. He never had a plan other than to become stronger so that he could kill the man who'd destroyed his life. In all those years, he'd never been able to directly challenge the Ice-jin lord, except for on Namek, and even then it hadn't been enough.

Vegeta waited in his pod patiently as a group of soldiers surrounded his tiny ship. Such an escort wasn't typical of the confident Ice-jin. He'd always felt that Vegeta was more than manageable and had never bothered. The Saiya-jin King hated knowing that to Freeza, he was little more than an insect to stepped on.

After Vegeta exited his pod, he smirked as a few of the warriors' scouters made cracking and snapping sounds. The idiots had set the power level too low again. He was even suppressing his ki, hoping to take the Ice-jin lord by surprise. It was obvious no one had expected Vegeta's base ki to rest at such a high level even though his ki had spiked over a few million in the past. Vegeta was actually glad that Freeza underestimated him. If the lizard was complacent, he would never expect what Vegeta had planned. No one would expect what Vegeta had planned.

He knew the way to the bridge well. It was one of the largest rooms on the ship and Freeza was particularly fond of hosting his little shows from such a venue. With the stars exposed in every direction, Vegeta often wondered if Freeza preferred this room so much merely because it was as if the entire galaxy were witnessing his actions. He wanted everyone to know who was the most powerful. He wanted them all to know how helpless they really were.

"King Vegeta," greeted the Ice-jin from his hover chair. He looked deceptively small and harmless from such a position. After seeing Freeza's transformed physique, Vegeta found the contrast almost amusing. Freeza wasn't even wearing a scouter. He really didn't care how powerful the Saiya-jin no Ou had become. Vegeta's eyes hardened.

"I want to see them," he said without decorum.

"Of course you do, but I'm sure you understand that before I can grant you any privileges, there are certain terms we must discuss." Vegeta frowned. He wanted to see his family at once but was willing to negotiate. There were certain terms that needed to be met if Zarbon was going to be able to get his mate and child off the ship anyway. He was sure that after Freeza was finished with him that the Ice-jin would destroy what was left of his family. The monster wasn't going to take any risks. Vegeta's son was supposed to be the child of the prophecy after all.

He needed to create a diversion.

Changing his posture, the Saiya-jin King took a deep breath.

Vegeta smiled before crossing his arms and smirking in the way that always set the Ice-jin on edge. Goading Freeza into a fight should be easy enough—after all, he'd been antagonizing Vegeta for years.

* * *

Bulma hadn't needed to spend much time in the infirmary. Much to her surprise, they hadn't even needed to put her in a regen tank. Not that her wounds had been serious enough for that anyway. The strike had been meant to scare her into submission and provoke Vegeta more than anything. Freeza had a flare for the dramatic. Perhaps he just wanted to know how her blood would look as it trickled across the mark on her back.

Bulma shuddered. Seeing the lizard did scare her, but now that she had something to fight for she found herself less overcome by the awesomeness of the creature's power. It also helped that Zarbon was still an ally. She was counting on him to help her safely escape with Trunks.

Vegeta was on the ship now too. Not that that meant that Bulma would be permitted to see him. She'd sensed him the moment he came on board through the strength of their bond. Still, Bulma was worried. Usually she could sense her mate's thoughts or emotions but he was shielding so strongly that she could only sense his nearness. A black sense of foreboding overcame her and at the same time, a sense of déjà vu.

This had happened before—she knew it had. How could she not remember? She'd been dreaming about this for over a year. The blood drained from Bulma's face. She'd always known that the visions she'd had were real. How could this be happening so soon? How could _this _be the moment she'd been anticipating for so long?

Her heart began to pound and her hands felt clammy. He was going to do it.

She walked to the porthole and forced herself to count to a hundred. She should have known. She should have prepared herself.

The doors to Bulma's quarters slid open but Bulma didn't move from her position near the porthole. She already knew who it was.

Vegeta stood in the doorway, silent. He was wearing his formal armor and his cape hung heavily from the clasps that attached it to his broad shoulders. He looked murderous, lethal, Saiya-jin.

Framed by the light from the hallway, Bulma could tell that he was still suppressing his emotions, but his typical façade had slipped slightly, the thoughts running through his head barely concealed. The Saiya-jin warrior, typically detached to a fault, looked feral.

It took him no more than five long strides to make it all the way across the room. Bulma turned to look at him more directly, but she was empty, resigned. She knew what he had planned already and it was no use trying to convince him otherwise. Her words of protest would only fall on deaf ears. She glanced over at Trunks who lay peacefully in his crib.

Without thought, Bulma reached out and traced the symbol of the House of Vegeta-sei that glowed dully on Vegeta's breast plate. Her visions had been astoundingly accurate—even down to such minute details.

Bulma looked up at the Saiya-jin King's eyes. They were glowing more brightly than they ever had and the gold illumination was so intense that it hurt her sensitive eyes, accustomed to the darkness of the room. She'd never felt such a sense of desperation from the proud Saiya-jin nor had she ever felt such determination.

Words were lost as Bulma stared up at the defiant Saiya-jin no Ou. She didn't need to say anything because he'd heard it all before. Her dreams had persisted for so long that both of them had already experienced the numerous reactions Bulma was capable of having in this situation.

Bulma felt separated from herself and from such a perspective time seemed to slow down and speed up simultaneously. She felt she had all the time in the world and yet no time at all. Still, it was impossible to ignore the overwhelming sensation of rightness. Though it pained her that Vegeta was going off to fight the greatest threat the universe had ever seen, Vegeta's confidence and strength made her feel surprisingly calm.

"You know what I have to do," said Vegeta, breaking the pregnant silence.

Bulma turned away from him, staring blankly out at the diamond speckled expanse of space.

"Yes," she replied, trying to keep her voice as neutral as possible.

_Zarbon has been given instructions. You and our son are to leave this ship as soon as possible._

His thoughts were punctuated and military. After spending so much time slowly breaking through Vegeta's cold exterior, the formality of the scene was particularly difficult to bare.

_I understand._

She responded. She didn't know if she would survive Vegeta's death, but she would honor his decision and show him the respect he deserved in these final moments. She wouldn't say what she wanted to, she wouldn't be selfish—she wouldn't ask him not to go.

Vegeta reached his hand out hesitantly and brushed the hair from Bulma's face, tucking it neatly behind her right ear. His gloved hand felt cool against her bare skin and Bulma shut her eyes, trying to prevent the tears that would give her away. She had to be strong for him even if just this once.

"Go," she barely managed to whisper. And without further thought, he was gone.


	44. chapter fortythree

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Forty-Three**

The corridors on Freeza's ship were relatively quiet as Vegeta hastened toward the bridge. Confident that his mate and child were safe, at least temporarily, he was now eager to enact the last part of his plan.

Bulma had known what he was going to do immediately. The too vivid dreams she'd been having since the formation of their bond had alluded to this pivotal moment. Though their exchange may have varied from the multiple reactions they'd experienced in her dreams, the overall emotional ambiance had been the same. He wasn't sure why or how she'd been having visions for so long, but it was strange living the memory through his own eyes as it happened in real time. If anything, the confirmation of the validity of Bulma's dreams only served to further strengthen his belief in the prophecy's fulfillment—if not with him, then at least with his son.

Vegeta crossed his arms, trying to stop the trembling in hands. He'd wanted to tell Bulma so many things, and mainly about his guilt, but he knew it would have been an act of selfishness. The only thing the truth would have accomplished was starting an argument and alleviating his burden. He had to be patient, timing was everything. He didn't want to spend what would most likely be the last moments he had with his mate filled with guilty confessions. It would be too difficult to see the coldness and resentment in her eyes at his betrayal.

As the doors to the command center slid open, Vegeta let the complete emptiness that only came with years of training fill his mind. He wouldn't be able to defeat the Ice-jin lord if he couldn't maintain his focus.

* * *

The mental shields Bulma erected almost immediately after Vegeta left were some of the strongest she'd ever attempted. With emotions tearing her in conflicting directions, Bulma was certain that the mental pressure would only put the Saiya-jin no Ou at a disadvantage.

The ring Vegeta had given her hung heavily from Bulma's finger as she paced the floor. Regardless of the doubt she'd had about Vegeta's feelings toward her at the onset of their relationship, she couldn't deny now that they had little to do with the instincts of the _Khon'daia na_. When she'd first met him on Namek, the defiant Saiya-jin no Ouji appeared to have the personality and emotional range of a concrete block. Now she wore his mother's ring.

Trunks was fully awake in his crib, a reminder of the bond she and Vegeta would always share. He watched patiently as his mother paced back and forth across the carpeted floor warily.

From the lack of commotion on the ship, Bulma gathered that the Saiya-jins had no idea that Vegeta had already left planet side. No doubt there would be a riot once it was discovered that the King had left of his own volition. Launching himself at Freeza could be considered nothing other than a death wish. Perhaps that was what sickened Bulma the most. Knowing what he planned made it that much worse.

She wasn't planning on attempting anything overly risky. There was no way around the fact that she could do little to help the Saiya-jins or her mate from such a position. Vegeta wouldn't have wanted it anyway. This was his fight.

Still, she wasn't going to go down without at least finding a way off the ship. Sure Zarbon was supposed to have everything planned out already, but there certainly was nothing wrong with keeping a contingency. Bulma had always been a firm believer in plan B's and C's.

Taking a brief glance around the room, Bulma made her way to the control panel located to the right of the entrance to her quarters. She knew better than to hope that the doors would open merely with her proximity; she'd already tried that at least a dozen times. The sensors were uncannily accurate when it came to which visitors were allowed in and out.

Breaking the security code would be easy. It didn't matter that the language setting was different. Given that Vegeta spoke "Standard" so well, Bulma hoped that she would be able to trigger the system into a tongue more familiar to her own and thereby discover some vital information. The communications chip she'd had implanted years ago at Capsule Corp had proven itself before. Hopefully, it would do so again.

She didn't allow herself to set her hopes too high as she lightly tapped the screen with well-rehearsed fingers. This was probably going to be her only shot at helping Zarbon with their escape plan.

To her delight, the screen blinked out for a moment before returning to its usual blue and white text. This time, the words were all in Standard.

_Thank Kami_.

Bulma muttered to herself.

* * *

Zarbon wasn't overly concerned as he stood in the communications room. Transmissions were starting to escalate across Vegeta-sei's surface as word that the King had disappeared spread like fire. As much as he hated to admit it, he was pleased that the nobles were so enraged. They may have been useless during the past months of negotiation, but at least their loyalty seemed to be in the right place. Freeza, either out of complacency or stupidity, had done the one thing that was sure to throw the Saiya-jins into a killing frenzy—threaten the strongest Saiya-jin royal line since the appearance of the Legendary.

Any fool knew that when predators were pushed into a corner they would strike. Zarbon was counting on it and grateful that the retaliation of the Saiya-jin populace would not only prove their fealty, but provide the much needed distraction Zarbon was hoping would help him flee the Ice-jin flagship. With Freeza away fighing the Saiya-jin King, and the other soldiers distracted by the Saiya-jin army, the chaos ought to be sufficient to sneak a tiny pod into the Saiya-jin atmosphere.

The corridors were eerily quiet. They had been since the Saiya-jin no Ou had arrived. It certainly wasn't normal. Zarbon could still remember the last time he'd seen Freeza go off to fight some cocky monarch. The mess hall had been crammed beyond capacity as nearly all of the Ice-jin's lackies gathered around the large communications screen where the fight was being broadcast. Watching Freeza play with the strong and powerful as if they were children never failed to give the soldiers their kicks. The purgers were the only ones who never really seemed to care for the lizard's little competitions. Perhaps it was because there were more than a few of them who, through personal experience, knew exactly how it felt to be on the receiving end of Freeza's well placed kicks and punches.

The atmosphere on board was confident, but humble. Freeza may come out with the final victory, but a great man would be lost in the process. The Saiya-jins were not a peaceful race, but they were universally respected for their loyalty, discipline, and strength. It was also true that they were cold and ruthless, but compared to Freeza, well, the contrast spoke for itself.

_Zarbon._

It was Vegeta's voice and Zarbon tried not to let his facial expressions give away his surprise as he continued down the ship's hallway. There were security devices that watched his every move.

_Vegeta?_

Zarbon had never been so thankful that Freeza was incapable of reading minds.

_Zarbon, we're leaving the ship. I've convinced Freeza to take the fight a distance from Vegeta-sei to reduce casualties. Leave while you still can._

The Saiya-jin King didn't wait for a response before re-erecting his mental shield. His confidence in Zarbon must have been very great. Zarbon would never risk Bulma's life or the Heir's regardless of the alignment he'd maintained with Freeza years ago. Naturally, he would take Vegeta's family to safety, but he had no intention of leaving the ship before he made one last overdue visit. It would take him awhile to find the warrior now that he'd lost his scouter, but the suspense was just part of the fun.

* * *

By the time the doors to her room slid open, Bulma was already lying on her bed with Trunks beside her. What she'd done was a risk, but if she could do anything, it was worth it. She smiled to herself. She wasn't nearly as powerless as they'd thought.

"Lady Bulma." The voice was familiar though the tone was strange. His voice was harsh, as if he'd been screaming ceaselessly for hours. Maybe he had.

"Yes, what is it?" she asked without moving from her position on the bed. She was in no mood to oblige the Saiya-jin traitor. He'd already played his part, and soon his betrayal would hardly matter at all. She heard some light beeping noises as commands were rapidly typed into her comm screen before he answered.

"I disabled the surveillance system in this room. Freeza will not hesitate this time to destroy me, so please, if anything, try to listen carefully to what I'm about to tell you. Since I have nothing left to lose, I have no reason to lie." He paused then barely whispered, "I've already lost what's most important to me anyway."

Bulma stiffened as she felt Radditz run his fingers through a lock of her hair. Touching had never been something he did casually, and considering their current situation, Bulma was shocked by the unexpected attention.

"You may not realize it, but I'm several years older than Vegeta. In fact, I was working as one of the Queen's guardsmen when Vegeta was born." Bulma stirred slightly but made no move to face him. "She was beautiful, the Queen. I knew from the time we were children that she would do great things. She was fierce, ruthless. I once watched her take down a man twice her size in unarmed combat before she hit puberty.

"You would have liked her," he said and smiled at Bulma. "In many ways you two are very similar.

"The nobles during those years were still required to put in their time aiding the armies. There was none of the laziness and uselessness then that the nobles depend upon now. So when she decided to join the Palace Guard, I followed swiftly behind her.

"Our relationship would have been frowned upon had we been more careless in hiding our feelings. She was an Elite noble and my status as a Third Class would only have tainted her bloodline. As you know, mixing between classes is still considered taboo today.

"Because of her beauty and strength, it wasn't uncommon for her to be sent on diplomatic missions as a personal guard of the King. Unfortunately, my ranking as a Third Class seldom took me off planet unless we were participating in a directly violent conflict where large numbers of 'expendable' warriors could be useful."

Bulma sucked in a breath and Radditz paused.

"Vegeta-sei wasn't always the way it is now," he began again. "When I was young, before Freeza arrived, Saiya-jins were considered to be a race of honor and skill. We were hired assassins and in great numbers we were responsible for aiding in countless galactic coups. We were defenders of the weak when violence was necessary and though we could never have been considered defenseless or gentle ourselves, a severe and unrelenting sense of justice was what most greatly influenced our success. It was through this method that we first began acquiring what we now call 'Associate Worlds'.

"Anyway, as the King was needed on missions farther and farther away from Vegeta-sei it was often months before I would see the face of the woman I loved. The accumulation of so many Associate Worlds made it so that our resources were growing thin. With the King gone, some of the nobles began to question his authority as their leader. King Vegeta had been of the proper breeding age for a couple of decades and without an heir, the nobles began to grow restless.

"I can still remember the day King Vegeta announced her as his future queen."

Bulma ran a hand along Trunks back, smoothing out his clothes, before finally turning to face Radditz.

"It happened the way bonding always does. Prolonged exposure to a suitable mate as well as physical contact or energy exchange can expedite the process. Still, bonding among Saiya-jins is very rare. When it occurs, the bond is considered to be sacred, unbreakable, final. No one understood that more than I did. But for me, nothing had changed. So instead of being her lover, I became her protector. It was all I could do as she was swept away from me by the charismatic King and the diplomacy that came so naturally to her.

"I fell into the shadows as was expected of me. On several occasions she even tried to confront me and explain herself. In retrospect, I realize how selfish I was. When I wasn't on duty, I spent the majority of my time out with other Third Class warriors trying to drink or whore away the memory of her skin, her hair, her black eyes. But every day I reported to duty showered and prepared. My devotion, in spite of the emptiness I felt, was probably a daily burden to her as she walked the palace halls and had to see the dark rings under my eyes—know that I would never accept her words of compassion and regret.

"Saiya-jins are not as heartless as you may think." Radditz grunted, as if the whole story now seemed ridiculous to him.

"She'd just found out she was pregnant when we first heard news of the Cold Empire."

Radditz got up from the bed and walked to the porthole as if staring into the expanse of space would help take him back to that time or erase it from his memories.

"There had been whispers if an enormous intergalactic empire for decades but we never imagined that they would take any interest in us. While the Saiya-jin Empire was continually growing, we had no intentions of encroaching upon another empire's claims unless we were directly asked to do so. Even still, we would never have risked our planet along with our Associate Worlds if the threat was too great. We were brave, but not stupid.

"When Freeza requested the Saiya-jin monarchy's presence, King Vegeta could hardly refuse. Whether they'd committed some breach of protocol or the Ice-jin just wanted to be more familiar with a neighboring empire, no one knew. But as horror stories of the worlds Freeza had conquered spread, King Vegeta knew that he could not ignore Freeza's invitation.

"Just after Vegeta was born, the King and Queen, along with several select Royal Guards, left to meet on a 'neutral' station just outside of the Saiya-jin Empire's territory. I was assigned to personally guard both the Queen and the Heir. My attachment to the boy was obvious and King Vegeta knew that I would readily give my life to protect his most valuable possessions. At first, things seemed to be going well. Freeza was pleasant and with Zarbon as our personal liaison it appeared that the negotiations between the two empires would go smoothly. We couldn't have been more wrong."

Radditz took a deep breath as he prepared to bring the past back to life.

"On the day our treaty was supposed to be finalized, Freeza let his true colors show. We were all assembled in the station's grand ballroom along with other nobles from different systems considering Freeza's proposition. We would all be able to keep our empires intact if we decided to join the Cold Empire and help expand its growth. Until this point, the overall consensus was not in the Cold family's favor. To most of us, it seemed like Freeza's proposition was merely an excuse to disguise enslaving the people from our own empires. Toward the end, we began to hope that if we could just band together for a short time, we could eliminate the Ice-jin's threat altogether.

"As the largest power, the Saiya-jins were the first to come before the Ice-jin lord and declare their decision. Through your experience with King Vegeta you may think that his first reaction was to resort to violence, but with great finesse and wisdom, he actually expressed his desire to continue commerce and negotiations with the Cold Empire—but not to join as an Associate Empire.

"Freeza smiled and, in his smooth voice, expressed his distress and disappointment that the Saiya-jins had decided against his generous offer. He rose from his seat at the head of the room and made his way toward the Queen. The entire room became silent as Freeza caressed her cheek with his clawed hand. Touching any Saiya-jin, especially another's mate, was considered extremely rude. Feud's had been fought over such discretions on Vegeta-sei. But the King just stood there patiently, trying not to seem aggressive or dishonored. He didn't want to give Freeza any motivation to turn the situation violent. The Queen meant everything to him.

"'I must say, Vegeta, she's quite lovely,' said Freeza. His dulcet tones sent shivers down my spine and I could feel myself being gripped by an instant fear for the Queen's life.

"'I'll make you a deal, my reluctant friend. Since my first offer was not to your liking, it appears you need some... motivation.'

"I watched, horrified, as Freeza's tail shot out and wrapped around the Queen's neck faster than anything I'd ever seen. All around us, scouters started popping as the Ice-jin's ki spiked at an alarming rate. We weren't aware that there was any power in the universe that could rival our own prophecies of the Legendary until that moment. Somehow, Freeza had been masking his true power during the entirety of our negotiations.

"The Queen looked calm even as Freeza tightened his grip, choking off her air supply. I'm still not sure whether she thought Freeza was bluffing or was just awaiting the inevitable. Either way, even though we were all shocked, I don't think any of us truly believed that Freeza would kill a fellow monarch's mate so brutally.

"The Saiya-jin King stood defiant though strangely humble. He didn't want to anger Freeza anymore than was necessary, and since none of us were sure that calling Freeza's 'bluff' would be wise, we waited.

"'Vegeta.' Though her voice was barely a whisper, all of us heard her. The Queen's voice had always had a particular resonance that demanded an audience. The room was silent, cautious. 'Never... don't let him...'

"Freeza's eyes narrowed.

"There was a brief tearing noise, a thud as if something heavy hit the floor, and then absolute silence.

"_No. Impossible._

"I thought, desperately trying to make sense of the scene before me, but it was too late. And there was so much blood. Strong hands gripped me around the arms and pulled me back, behind the crowd. King Vegeta had collapsed on the floor and was screaming soundlessly, gripping his head in his hands. It was a miracle he had even survived the ordeal. As you know, being forcefully separated from one's mate causes an indescribable amount of pain and, in most cases, death."

Here, Radditz paused and turned to look back at Bulma.

"Go on, Radditz. I know this must be hard for you." Her words were calming and Radditz was glad that the sneer she'd greeted him with was gone.

"I tried frantically for hours afterward to communicate telepathically with the King, but after the death of the Queen, it seemed that his abilities to communicate mind to mind were destroyed. It wasn't until years later that we realized some of his other mental faculties had been destroyed as well.

"Anyway, finally someone came to the room I was being held in and told me that Freeza required a personal audience with me.

"When I entered the control room, Freeza was facing away from me, with his arms folded. Without turning, he made me an offer. If I agreed to monitor the Heir—the now current King Vegeta—and keep him privy to some of the more sensitive information on planet Vegeta-sei then he wouldn't kill the young prince.

"Right as I opened my mouth to refuse, the Ice-jin turned to face me and I realized I'd mistakenly assumed Freeza's arms to be crossed. Instead, he was holding Vegeta in his arms.

"'Almost cute... for a monkey prince,' said Freeza, his voice pleasant. But his eyes were hard. 'Radditz, you _will_ do as I ask or the entire Saiya-jin monarchy along with your pathetic little planet will die along with your Queen.' He smiled cruelly and then looked down at the baby. 'Starting with you!' he said to the child merrily and poked him on the nose. That action alone made me want to vomit. The boy was so fragile at that age.

"I stood for a moment, trying to think things through. Refusing him was so much more difficult while he held the child in his arms. While Freeza waited, he told me about how he'd organized his coup. All the other Saiya-jin guards had been killed. The only thing that had spared me was my embarrassingly low ki level and my obvious loyalty to the Saiya-jin Heir and Queen. Freeza knew exactly which strings to pull to make me his slave.

"Still, as he laid his entire plan out before me, my only thoughts were on Vegeta and how I could save him. He was the strongest Saiya-jin child we'd seen in centuries, a child I'd spent everyday with since he was born, and he was _her_ child. How could I stand there and watch the last part of her I had left die?

"I couldn't, I knew, but that didn't have to mean that my loyalty was changing.

"Numbly, I agreed to Freeza's plan and secretly vowed to gain the power necessary to defend the young Prince at any cost."

"But, after all these years... What happened?" asked Bulma.

"You're probably wondering how Vegeta-sei came to be the ruthless planet it is today." When Bulma nodded, Radditz continued. "As I said before, we've always been a battle-hardened race. When we came back planet side after the confrontation with Freeza, the King was half mad. He could hardly control his ki and we feared he would inadvertently kill an official or important ambassador. In order to protect the monarchy, the Senate was established to give the King time to recover. At that time, the King and myself were the only Saiya-jins who knew about what had happened on Freeza's ship.

"You see, Freeza had it worked out quite nicely. The Queen's death was explained by a tragic explosion that took place while we were at the space station. He'd worked it out so neatly that the guilt was placed upon another group of dignitaries. Naturally, these were the other lesser powers who had witnessed Freeza's little 'show' and still refused his offer. In the end, anyone who didn't join the Cold Empire ended up dead. The Saiya-jin's were so enraged that they sent a small party to 'purge' the systems that the murderous dignitaries belonged to.

"It was a sad time for the Saiya-jin race. Though problems had begun to develop with some of our Associate Worlds before the Queen was murdered, things started to become worse and worse as the Cold Empire tightened its grip on some of the peripheral systems that belonged to us. Dokar-sei is a good example of one such system. For awhile we couldn't explain why these systems were causing so many problems. The Saiya-jins became overly paranoid, searching for blame where it wasn't.

"The Saiya-jin council actually thought that Freeza had lost interest. Of course, I'd always known how untrue that assumption really was.

"As the years passed, King Vegeta's madness worsened until he became nearly as blood thirsty as Freeza himself. The council was taken over by Senate members who were corrupt or power hungry. The few positive influences we had left were always silenced or ignored. Slowly, Vegeta-sei lost its balance.

"You can imagine, with Vegeta raised in such an atmosphere, why he grew up to be a mirror of his father. Violence or the threat of violence molded him into the man he is now. I hated watching it. I also hated knowing that no matter how close we were, he never really trusted me. Not that he had reason to. I'd all but sold my soul to Freeza at that point.

"Zarbon showed up on our planet not long after we returned. No one would have ever expected my betrayal with one of Freeza's most flashy and important toys stalking through the palace. I always felt somewhat jealous of him. He was feared and respected. And on top of that, Vegeta accepted him so readily even though he stood passive when the Queen was being murdered. I never understood their relationship. Zarbon became close to the boy very quickly. Part of me was waiting for Zarbon to be discovered as a traitor too. But the more I watched the two of them, the more I realized that Zarbon depended on Vegeta, and somehow, even cared for him.

"I kept my promise to Freeza. I was required to give, in the very least, biannual reports that documented all of the major happenings on Vegeta-sei. Nothing so plebeian as political changes or death reports, more subtle, private things. I tried my best to keep our prophecies about the Legendary away from the Ice-jin's ears but he somehow still found out. He nearly beat me to death when he realized I'd been keeping the information from him.

"I'm afraid you know most of the rest," said Radditz.

"Okay, but when you met me you assumed that I was the former King's mate, didn't you?" asked Bulma. She didn't want to believe Radditz's story, but, for some reason, she did.

"Vegeta had never really shown any interest in courtship in the past and considering your rather exotic coloring, I assumed you were a member of the King's harem. I thought I'd met all the girls, but I was never as close to Vegeta's father as I was to him," he replied.

"Is it possible to bond more than once, then?" asked Bulma, still pulling at straws.

"I didn't think so, but what else could I assume? Vegeta denied any connection between the two of you and I'd never seen you before." He paused. "How was I supposed to know that a human female of all things would just show up in the middle of the royal garden, mysteriously bonded to the Heir?" he finished a bit defensively.

Bulma leaned back against the headboard and crossed her arms over her chest. She mindlessly played with the ring the Saiya-jin no Ou had given her.

"So, why did you bring us here, then—Trunks and me?" she asked, staring out the porthole from the bed.

"Freeza was going to destroy the whole planet, Bulma. You and Trunks included. Vegeta was the only choice the Saiya-jin people had. He wouldn't fight unless you were directly in danger.

"Though I had my doubts in the past, I've seen a change in him since you arrived here. He isn't like his father. History is not going to repeat itself this time. And he's strong, stronger than anything I've ever seen before. He doesn't need my protection anymore. He's going to ascend and he _is_ going to win."

Bulma wished she could be so sure. She was still so _angry_. Radditz should have never endangered her child, regardless of what he was trying to do to in order to push Vegeta into Ascension.

"Besides, Bulma, he was going to find out about me eventually anyway, and I knew what was in store for me. Vegeta has no choice but to kill me. I deserve it for what I've done. The least I can do is help destroy the empire that has caused the Saiya-jin people to compromise and become something shameful. I might as well die for a cause."

"What do you mean?" Bulma asked, suddenly worried.

"Bulma, when Vegeta and Freeza leave I want you to find Zarbon. I was surprised to see him here, but I can guess what he's doing. There's no way in hell he would betray Vegeta." He paced over to her and stood at his full height. This was the first time Bulma had ever been afraid of him since the time she first saw him on the river's shore.

"Why? Radditz, what are you going to do?" Her voice was frantic.

"I'm going to blow up this ship," he said, and before she could reply, left the room.


	45. chapter fortyfour

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Forty-Four**

Nappa grinned as he watched Vegeta-sei turn into a small red globe behind his military vessel. The time had finally come to take action.

* * *

Zarbon was surprised and worried when he encountered Radditz briskly walking down the hall. He hadn't been expecting the warrior to come from the direction of Bulma's quarters.

_Nevermind, he's _just_ the Saiya-jin you were looking for anyway._

Thought Zarbon, trying to force the tension from his shoulders. It was unlikely that Radditz would have done anything to the human queen. He spent most of his time fawning over her or favoring her. Even here, on Freeza's flagship, it couldn't be denied. The traitorous warrior had received a beating for it. Though by the looks of him, it had done anything but forced him into submission. Zarbon almost admired him for it. Almost.

"Where are you scurrying off to so quickly?" asked Zarbon in a casually mocking tone. The hallway they were in was still too public for any of the things he had planned for the traitor.

Radditz stopped after thinking for a few moments and turned to Zarbon with a peculiar look on his face. He looked haunted.

"Zarbon, get to Bulma. I can't promise that you have much time left."

* * *

Almost immediately after Radditz left, Bulma was pacing her room again.

Listening to Radditz's summary of what had happened to Vegeta's parents was horrifying, but enlightening. After spending so much time wondering about Vegeta's past, she partially wished she could return to ignorance.

_What a horrible way to die._

She thought as she put a hand around her neck without thinking.

Kami, how was she supposed to react to this? Stuck in the middle of a political battle that had been going on for three decades. She knew that King Vegeta had sold Vegeta to Freeza in their own dimension just before Vegeta-sei was destroyed. Was it possible that his mother had been murdered in an equally brutal manner in their dimension too? With a dead mother and a crazy father, it was no wonder Vegeta had no choice but to submit to Freeza's rule. Everyone he cared for, everything that mattered, either betrayed him or was destroyed. And everyday Freeza pushed him farther into a dark place until finally he felt like he didn't deserve redemption. He didn't care about anything else, not when it could be taken from him, not when it could be used against him, like it was now.

At least Freeza hadn't had a chance to destroy Earth in their dimension as well, but it did explain why Vegeta felt so strongly about becoming the next Super Saiya-jin. He must have hated knowing that he could never fulfill the prophecy; must have hated knowing that he wasn't _human_ enough. Or maybe he hadn't known, maybe part of the tragedy of it all was that Vegeta never knew he couldn't fulfill the prophecy the way Goku could. He'd spent all that time training in vain. Maybe transferring to this dimension just made him realize how hopeless it was.

Bulma wasn't shocked when Zarbon walked right into her room, distress evident on his face. If he felt at all the way she did, well then, maybe they could help each other understand how everything in the universe suddenly seemed to be going mad.

Zarbon's cape flared around him and his eyes were doing that bizarre glowing that Bulma would never get used to regardless of his reptilian features. He was worried.

"Radditz..." he began.

She didn't want to think about him. Vegeta was off fighting Freeza and now Radditz had only succeeded in giving her more ammunition for her nightmares.

"Zarbon, I might have created a diversion but it won't last very long. Do you know how to get us to the nearest shuttle?" she asked, completely ignoring his panic. If she was in control of her emotions, then just maybe she could be in control of the situation too.

"Of course," he said, visibly trying to calm himself.

"I've programmed the computers to think that the ship is being attacked. We're going to have to take a fighter shuttle out so that no one will question us. I'm going to wait until we get to the hanger to actually trigger the whole thing so that Trunks and I can hide on the ship before anyone else has time to get there."

It was a good plan. Zarbon hadn't had any luck getting around security on his own. His main plan had been to escort Bulma and the Heir directly to the hanger himself and blast anyone who got in his way. Bulma's diversion would work nicely.

Bulma was pacing the room at this point, obviously deep in thought.

"Bulma, Vegeta's already left the ship. You _must_ tell me what's going on," said Zarbon, trying to understand the situation.

"Radditz is going to blow up the ship, Zarbon," said Bulma with complete calm. "He's giving us a chance to escape."

* * *

The Saiya-jin King raced through space with a single-minded intensity. He wanted to get to the system he and the Ice-jin had decided upon as soon as possible. The more quickly Freeza was distracted, the easier it would be for Bulma to escape with their son.

It had been too easy convincing the lizard to isolate their battle. Frankly, Vegeta was surprised when Freeza agreed to moving their fight further out in space. The Ice-jin lord had never been one to indulge Vegeta in any of his requests. He supposed Freeza couldn't fathom that being separated from his command post would ever be dangerous for him. The bastard was as confident as he was evil.

Vegeta turned his thoughts back to the matter at hand. Once they left the Vegeta-sei system, the risk to his family's lives would be minimized. He also didn't want to risk any of his fellow Saiya-jins interfering directly in the battle. This battle was his, one way or another, it was his destiny. And he'd wanted this for years.

But he had to stop thinking about that. If there was going to be any chance of him winning the fight this time, he was going to have to put everything else out of his mind.

Vegeta closed his eyes and focused on the part of his mind that always calmed him.

_Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan._

He chanted the words he'd been given as a child over and over again in his head. The calming effect it had on him was impressive. After they'd given him those particular lines as a child, the world seemed clearer. He could focus. What little peace he'd ever found while serving under Freeza he'd felt while murmuring those words to himself. They reminded him of who he was and what it meant to be the only remaining hope for his race.

Now that he knew the key to becoming the Legendary was something he could never achieve, a strange calmness had come over him. All this time and he'd thought he was somehow being cheated out of his destiny when really it had cheated him. He felt empty.

_Figures, I had to travel to a different dimension to find out that my destiny has always been a joke._

It just wasn't what he'd thought it would be. Not that it wasn't as noble.

Still, he was going to fight. He wasn't sure why the prophecy was bothering him now, but there was no way he was going to roll over and show his belly to the Ice-jin as was expected of him. He'd died once at the villain's hands but this time_ he _was going to be the one throwing the punches. Freeza was never going to terrorize the universe again.

As the planets raced by, Vegeta began to slow the aggressive speed he'd been maintaining. From what his scouter was telling him, this system was devoid of any sort of sentient life. That suited him just fine. He didn't want to have to worry about protecting the innocents. He wasn't sure he was that merciful right now.

* * *

It was a miracle that Bulma's private quarter's weren't very far from the nearest hanger. With a ship this size, making it any farther without someone noticing them would have been hopeless at best. Especially considering he had to maintain a completely unrushed facade as he walked the human and her son through the halls. Anything else would immediately alert security's attention.

Once they made it through the password encrypted hanger doors, it was smooth sailing. Bulma immediately walked to the wall communications screen and began typing in her commands. If Zarbon had been less rushed for time, he might have been more impressed.

There were only a few shuttles to choose from in this particular part of the flag ship, but Zarbon thought that a moderately sized vessel would be their best bet. There was no way they would all fit in one of the spherical single seaters and the medium sized shuttle provided better stealth technology and maneuverability.

Zarbon approached the most adequate ship and examined the controls. They were standard. He wanted something with a little extra boost. Wasting time out in the open air when war was on the way wasn't intelligent.

After finding a ship that suited him, Zarbon turned to Bulma, waiting for her to enact the next part of their escape plan.

"I hope this works," said Bulma as she crossed her fingers and punched the alarm codes into the console.

Immediately, the lights in the room started flashing red.

"_The ship is under attack. Please report to the nearest battle station,_" said the automated voice of the computer repeatedly. It was eerily monotone as the ship abruptly turned to chaos.

"Someday, you're going to _have_ to tell me how you do these things," said Zarbon with surprised admiration.

Bulma grinned at him. "They don't call me a genius for nothing."

* * *

Nappa gazed on Freeza's vessel with bloodlust. After Freeza's broadcast on Vegeta-sei's public channels, it had been more than easy for the Elite to gather a large group of warriors to join his cause. Now, with almost a thousand Saiya-jin troops behind him, Nappa could take his vengeance on the Ice-jin freak and the pathetic alien woman who was corrupting his King.

"Saiya-jin vessel, what is the nature of your approach of Lord Freeza's ship?" came the voice of the communications officer. But Nappa was already preparing to evacuate his pod.

"Death," he said. Everything else was static.

* * *

"My, my, has the monkey king finally decided to grace me with his presence?" asked Freeza rhetorically as Vegeta softly landed on the small moon. The destination he'd chosen allowed for terrestrial or aerial battle and was devoid of geological formations.

Vegeta measured Freeza and his deceptively small form as the Ice-jin stared him down. Vegeta, of all people, knew not to underestimate opponents due to size alone. He couldn't remember how many battles he'd won after he'd been wrongfully assumed weaker because of his stature. Freeza may have been small, but he could destroy the moon they were standing on and the entire system in little more than an afterthought. And this wasn't even his highest level of ascension.

"It's a pity your planet will have to be destroyed," commented Freeza, trying to regain the Saiya-jin no Ou's complete attention. "I was particularly interested in getting to know your little human whore better. Her beauty is quite a commodity on this side of the galaxy."

Vegeta's eyes flashed. Though he knew that Freeza's true sexual tastes contradicted his words, the insult was difficult to ignore. Freeza never had qualms bending his personal preferences if the end result was in his favor. Torturing Bulma publicly had apparently done little to quench his thirst.

"Ah. Finally something that brings some fire out of you." Freeza smiled coldly. "Maybe you'll be more fun than your father was, after all."

Vegeta ground his teeth and clenched his fists, the power he'd worked so hard to gain slowly began to seep into an angry red aura. He took in a deep breath and released it slowly through his nose. It was an effective calming technique he'd learned ages ago from Bulma. He could vividly picture her standing in her kitchen on Chikyuu, fuming and counting to one hundred in her head, trying her best not to scream at him in derision. Now those days seemed like an eternity ago.

_I am not my father._

Vegeta recited to himself. He would not watch passively as his mate and child were threatened. Bulma would not die like his mother. He would sacrifice everything if he had to, as long as she and the child were unharmed. He would not let his father's weakness taint the decisions he had to make.

A thousand thoughts ran through the Saiya-jin no Ou's head. The feeling of betrayal when his father gave him over to Freeza in exchange for his planet. The screams of millions of Saiya-jins as they were incinerated and Vegeta-sei destroyed anyway. The sharp pain as he was whipped for impertinence. Freeza's maniacal laugh as his blood soaked its way into the grout of the cold tiled floor.

And then there was the onna. Her eyes flashing as she cautiously asked him to stay with her family. Her ill concealed smiles after delivering a particularly brutal insult. The way she had befriended him in spite of the carefully constructed barriers he'd erected. And, eventually, the glint of his mother's ring on her hand.

Vegeta looked up at Freeza defiantly and unclasped the cape that hung from his shoulders. It fell heavily to the ground.

He could not have been given this chance just to let history repeat itself. He would do this, if not for himself, then for her.

* * *

Bulma had barely made it onto the ship with Trunks before the first wave of guards flooded the hanger.

"Master Zarbon," said one of the men, never questioning Zarbon's proximity to one of their shuttles. Obviously, he assumed Zarbon was planning to join the fight. "It's the Saiya-jins, sir."

Zarbon waited for the man to continue.

"It would appear a small fleet is attacking our ship."

Zarbon carefully tempered his facial expression. This must have been part of the diversion Bulma created with the computer. It was amazing how well she had enacted her plan.

"Clearly. What are you waiting for? Are you going to wet yourself or do you need me to hold your hand?" asked Zarbon as he let some of the reptilian hiss edge into his voice. "Open the bay doors. Launch all available shuttles."

"Of—of course," stammered the younger warrior as Zarbon stared him down.

"_Now_."

The man scurried off and Zarbon made his way to his own craft, smiling to himself, his eyes hard. Really, these idiots were too easy to intimidate once Freeza wasn't there to do everything for them. They couldn't rely on the Ice-jin's amazing power for everything.

As the door closed behind him, Zarbon glanced at the woman and child already harnessed to the seats in the back of the ship. Bulma's eyes were bright.

"Nice," said Bulma with a bemused tone. "Enjoy making Freeza's lackies cry for their mommies?"

"Oh, shut up," said Zarbon. Bulma smiled tightly.

"I've already programmed the coordinates into the computer. All we have to do is launch," said Bulma as Zarbon took a seat at the head of the craft. He was starting to wonder who was rescuing whom.

The ship hovered in the air as the bay doors slowly opened. Through the window, Zarbon could see the men scurrying to get into their pods before the airlock was released. Everyone was frantic.

Before the airlock had time to decompress, a blast hit the ship, shaking their escape shuttle violently. Zarbon's brow furrowed. Were the Saiya-jins actually attacking?

"I suppose _that_ was not part of your escape plan? Looks like Radditz may not have to blow up the ship afterall." Zarbon turned to look at the rattled female sitting behind him. Something was wrong.

Bulma's eyes widened as she continued to stare out the front of the ship.

"Zarbon—!" she screamed.

But it was too late. Everything went black.


	46. chapter fortyfive

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Forty-Five**

Nappa watched as the few shuttles attempting to join the battle were reduced to little more than burning pieces of metal and shrapnel. Assuming that the Chikyuu-jin bitch would be with Zarbon had been a stroke of genius. After using his scouter to locate the hideous reptile's ki signature, he had made his way to the other side of the ship, barely impeded by security. Even though Freeza had expected such a reaction from the Saiya-jin populace, he had still left his command vessel sadly unprotected. Nappa didn't mind, it just made his mission that much easier.

As the smoke settled and the ship's fire suppression system kicked in, the Elite used his scouter to locate any remaining life forms. Most of the men were dead, but his prey, he noticed with sick satisfaction, was still lingering on the brink of death. He smiled. He wanted to see them face to face.

Nappa casually made his way over to the shuttle with the only remaining life forms.

The woman's ki had always been shockingly low, but Zarbon's ki was respectable. Now the creature's ki was lower than his own. The execution would be easier than he'd hoped.

"Attacking defenseless prey has always been one of your less Saiya-jin qualities, hasn't it, Nappa?" commented an all too familiar voice from somewhere within the lingering smoke.

Radditz stepped into view and Nappa chuckled. The Third Class's ki was so low that he hadn't even detected it on this side of the ship.

"Joining in on the fun, are you, traitor? Don't mind me. I've already found what I've come for." Nappa glanced at the only remaining shuttle in the room. Though badly singed, the ship was relatively intact.

Radditz moved in between the Commander and the shuttle in question, but Nappa paid little attention. He remembered how easy it had been to dismantle the weaker warrior the night he'd abducted the Earth woman.

"You will not harm them," said Radditz with a surprising amount of confidence in his voice.

"Freeza's fun is over. Surely he won't mind if I finish the job he started, especially not after the King is through with him," said Nappa, clearly misunderstanding Radditz's intent. "Then he'll just be dead."

Radditz made no move to let the larger warrior pass. If the lower ranking warrior wanted to die he had no problem adding another casualty to the night's battle. He was already bathing in the blood of countless victims.

"Haven't you learned this lesson before? You're no match for an Elite, Third Class." Nappa was beginning to get angry. No one got between him and his prey.

It was Radditz's turn to chuckle.

"You misunderstand me, baka," said Radditz with a tone Nappa couldn't understand. Nappa's eyes started to see red. He'd never taken insults well, even for a Saiya-jin. "And haven't you learned by now to _never_ underestimate someone trained by Lord Freeza?"

Nappa snarled. His scouter was beeping frantically as the numbers indicating Radditz's ki level started to rise. One thousand, two thousand, three... Even if he made it to ten, Nappa would still be able to overwhelm him.

Nappa's scouter beeped even more frantically before there was a popping noise and a large crack appeared across the view screen. He'd set the contraption to a little under Zarbon's class, expecting the alien to be in poor condition after taking the brunt of his blast. Radditz's ki shouldn't be even close to that level.

_What the hell?!_

Radditz smirked. "It's called ki concealment, Commander," said Radditz condescendingly.

His ki level was now that of an Elite and still rising. Radditz's fists began to glow blue, the light casting strange shadows across the hard planes of his face and the debris cluttering the room. Nappa's eyes widened.

Radditz struck the larger man across the face with a force Nappa hadn't been expecting. Regardless of the numbers that had scrolled across his scouter, the noble still had trouble associating Radditz with that kind of power.

"You will not defeat me, Nappa. I'm not going to pretend to be weak any longer," said Radditz with certainty in his voice. Nappa spat and wiped away the blood from his busted lip.

"Lucky hit," Nappa growled before releasing an enraged battle cry and rushing at the younger Saiya-jin.

Radditz easily dodged Nappa's hit, the shot poorly planned and swung more out of rage than cool calculation. Radditz had brute strength and cunning on his side.

Grabbing Nappa's extended arm, Radditz twisted forcefully and flipped the warrior around with a wet ripping sound. He needed to dismember the Saiya-jin Commander quickly before all of Freeza's troops left the ship. Little good it would do destroying the damn thing if all of the Ice-jin's henchmen escaped. At least Nappa had started his job for him, he thought, glancing at the dead bodies scattered around the room.

"How...?" gritted Nappa through the excruciating pain of his severed arm. Radditz was already positioning himself for the final blow.

"Not how, Nappa, why." Radditz let a large amount of ki flow into his open hand. The energy began to spark and crackle as he extended his arm before the fallen Commander's face.

"For my people," he said as he released the blast. "For my King."

* * *

Zarbon shook the dizziness from his head as he came to. He'd barely had any time to put up a ki shield before the blast struck them. Bulma was a mess. Still strapped in her seat, the earthling was badly burned and slightly concussed. She was going to need a regen tank immediately. Chikyuu-jin were remarkably frail. If he hadn't seen the energy blast reflected in her eyes, they would all be dead. The shock wave had shaken the entire ship violently.

Trunks stared at him from his prone position beside his mother. The boy looked to be in perfect health.

_Built like his father, that one._

Thought Zarbon, thankful that the child was unharmed.

In a birdlike gesture, Zarbon quirked his head to the side as he heard two men conversing in the hanger. Their voices were barely recognizable through the roar of the flames and the fire system trying to put them out.

_Nappa._

He thought with instant anger.

_The bloody fool._

The Commander had always despised Zarbon for not being Saiya-jin. He must have come after them on his own. Two aliens and the half breed Heir could be written off as convenient casualties of battle if executed properly. No wonder Nappa had sought them first. He didn't want to give them a chance to escape before he destroyed them.

Zarbon continued to listen as the confrontation became violent. Eventually, the talking stopped completely, followed by the roar of a small ki blast.

"Zarbon?" questioned Radditz as he pressed the button to open the shuttle door.

"What happened to Nappa?" asked Zarbon in surprise as Radditz's muscled frame peered into the cabin.

"He got in the way of my plans." Radditz stared Zarbon down, unwilling to give any more information.

Zarbon looked at Radditz appraisingly. For a traitor, the Saiya-jin was suddenly becoming all sorts of useful.

"The shuttle appears to still be in working condition, Zarbon. Besides the heat from the blast, not much energy made it through your shield. The hull is still intact."

Zarbon turned toward the blinking navigation console and the shuttle's controls. Amazingly, the ship was still functional.

"Thank you," said Zarbon sincerely, the double meaning behind his words apparent. Radditz just smiled and pushed the button to close the shuttle hatch.

Zarbon sighed and looked down at the unconscious woman in his arms. So much for escaping unscathed. She would need to spend several days in a regen tank in the very least. Her condition could be critical.

Placing Bulma on one of the few cots the small vessel possessed, Zarbon once again made his way to the navigation console.

This time, he was _very_ glad Bulma had already programmed the landing coordinates.

* * *

Vegeta carefully focused his energy as he let the power within him seep into his bloodstream. He couldn't sense anything from his Ice-jin enemy, but Freeza's power had always been that way—empty, cold, detached.

Freeza smiled wickedly, his thin purplish lips pulling back from sharp white teeth. It was obvious to him now that he wasn't going to be able to goad the Saiya-jin King into striking the first blow.

"Impressive. You have more control than I gave you credit for." His tone was mocking. "But you are still no match for me."

Vegeta phased out of sight, just barely avoiding the Ice-jin's blow. Had he been a half second slower, Freeza's fist would have punched nicely through the back of his skull. Adrenaline rushed through his system, slowing everything down and giving him the added speed he would need to survive.

"Even more impressive," came the Ice-jin's voice. "Whatever _have_ you been doing with your spare time? Been eating more vegetables than usual?"

Vegeta spun, trying to locate the voice that was echoing behind him. But there was no one there. The surface of the moon lacked anything that could provide concealment. Freeza must have been phasing in and out of space quickly enough that Vegeta's Saiya-jin senses couldn't detect him. He couldn't even rely on his sixth sense to lock in on the lizard's ki signature.

"Playing hide and seek?" called the Saiya-jin no Ou tauntingly. The Ice-jin chuckled.

Suddenly, Freeza phased back into view. "You're it!" he said, smiling into the King's face and striking the Saiya-jin with an alarmingly powerful ki blast.

Vegeta felt himself spinning as he was thrown into open space. The ki blast had been little more than a warning. It was insulting. This was not a game. Righting himself, he placed a hand over his chest where the ki blast had struck. Miraculously, the breastplate, and coincidentally the rest of his torso, was still intact. Whatever the woman had done to improve Saiya-jin armor, it was damned useful. Why hadn't he helped her with it sooner?

From his position on the moon, Freeza blurred out of view as he phased again. But Vegeta was ready for him, blocking the Ice-jin's fist with his forearm and pushing him away with a blow to Freeza's solar plexus. Within only a fraction of a second, Vegeta struck out with a straight legged kick to Freeza's unguarded abdominals.

"Sneaky sneaky," said Freeza from whatever position he'd phased to again.

_Now!_

Thought Vegeta as his sixth sense picked up a flicker of Freeza's ki barely thirty feet away. Without giving himself away, the Saiya-jin King leaped forward and grabbed onto the Ice-jin's own breastplate, throwing him forcefully at the ground with a ki blast of his own. A large crater formed where Freeza's body must have impacted. A cloud of dust rose and everything was temporarily still.

"You're going to wish you hadn't done that," hissed Freeza as the dust began to swirl on the surface of the moon. Small pebbles floated into the air as the Ice-jin's power radiated from the crater. "No one soils me and lives."

Freeza floated into the air, his aura swirling with the debris from his impact against the compact earth. A drip of purple blood was slowing drizzling down his immaculate white chin, his armor was scuffed, and his eyes glowed red.

The Ice-jin screamed as he let his power consume him. Dust and moon particles were cast away violently as his aura thickened and blocked him from view. The moon shook with the release of an overwhelming amount of energy as Freeza's ki level spiked to a million. Having already been exposed to Freeza's different levels of ascension, Vegeta watched on as the Ice-jin transformed. Things were going according to plan.

Freeza laughed, his voice several tones deeper, as the aura that surrounded him faded. He was taller and broader now, the spikes on his head more prominent than before. Gazing upon him, Vegeta couldn't help but feel that he was in the presence of the very devil himself. He no longer looked deceptively frail.

"You will not be so lucky again," said Freeza in a menacing voice, his small eyes locking on the stationary form of the Saiya-jin King.

Freeza clenched his fist, looking down at the long talons of his hand as ki began to pool into a glowing red flame.

Lashing out at the unsuspecting Saiya-jin, the Ice-jin's claws sunk deeply into the plate guarding Vegeta's internal organs. The cloth tore with a loud ripping sound and Vegeta felt the sting of ki against his skin. He wasn't bleeding, but his skin had been punctured, cauterized temporarily by the ki Freeza had used to strengthen his blow. As far as he could tell, the wound was only superficial. His reflexes were good, but not good enough.

How Kakkarot had defeated Freeza, even at this level, was a mystery. The Ice-jin's ki was at least million and his third level of ascension was even more phenomenal. Only the Lengendary could defeat him. And that option was now off limits. If Vegeta wasn't careful, he wouldn't survive and his planet would undoubtedly be destroyed again. Bulma and Trunks would be killed and never make it back to Chikyuu. They would never make it back to their rightful home.

_No!_

Thought Vegeta as he screamed and powered up. His ki rose to nearly 100,000, putting him in league with most members of the Ginyuu Squad, but it wouldn't be enough. Freeza was at least ten times stronger and infinitely faster.

* * *

Radditz watched as the shuttle with Zarbon, Bulma, and Trunks exited the ship. It had been a close call, and he'd had to expose the power he'd been suppressing for years, but the second he heard the ship alarms go off, he'd known what he had to do.

Nappa was no longer a necessary evil. He'd served his indirect purpose after abducting Bulma and unknowingly pushing Vegeta to succeed the Saiya-jin throne. But he'd also come surprisingly close to discovering Radditz's alliance with Freeza. If Vegeta hadn't had such a low tolerance for the moron and already been in an awful mood that night outside of the King's quarters, it would have all been over. Radditz never would have been able to lead Vegeta into fighting the Ice-jin tyrant and subsequently Vegeta-sei would have been destroyed.

For his ministrations, he would surely be executed. Still, it would be an honor to be killed by his King—to be killed by _her_ son.

Radditz raced to engineering. He doubted anyone would still be there with the ship under attack. A Saiya-jin fleet was no small threat to ignore.

He punched in the code to the door and entered, carefully looking around for any members of the crew. The room was dark and silent, filled with a peculiar white noise that could only be created by computers and heavy machinery.

As he penetrated the darkness of the room, the ship's core loomed before him, casting undulating green shadows across his features. It was a nuclear fusion cell. He took a minute to consider the complexity of the technology. After being surrounded and threatened by some of the most powerful entities in the universe, Radditz was still in awe of the extraordinary energy contained within a single atom. Set to the proper specifications, the ship's fusion core could create as much energy as Vegeta-sei's stars. And somehow they'd managed to harness its power. He was going to have to handle it very _very_ delicately.

Reaching the control panel, Radditz checked the stats of the field that protected the core. Given the incredible power the machinery possessed, the engineers had made sure that the core could survive almost any attack without causing a disaster. And it was a good thing too. If the core were to explode, it would likely take the entire system with it.

After assuring himself that the core's field was intact, Radditz approached another piece of equipment and tapped a few select keys, disabling the fire suppression program commands. The only way to get the ship to self destruct would be to eject the core and cause a short in the ship's atmosphere control system. Because the majority of Freeza's troops were aerobic, engineering was full of a complicated oxygen filtering system. If all of the oxygen gas was consumed at once by a large enough fire, the ship would implode, unable to support such a great pressure difference within the vacuum of space.

Of course, by that time, Radditz planned on being far away from the Ice-jin command center. Reaching within the complicated machinery, he rewired a few choice circuits and rechecked his handiwork. Perfect.

He placed his hand over the plastic casing that protected the release for the ship's core and double checked the numbers indicating the security of its field. Everything was a go.


	47. chapter fortysix

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Forty-Six**

The shuttle craft carrying Zarbon and Vegeta's family had barely landed when they heard the sonic boom. The medical staff Zarbon had alerted of their arrival mid flight all turned simultaneously as burning pieces of metal raced through the sky like meteors. Apparently Radditz had been successful.

Freeza was temporarily cut off from the rest of his empire now that his only means of intergalactic travel and communication was destroyed.

"She needs to be put in a tank immediately!" said Zarbon as he carried Bulma's prostrate form out onto the platform. "The child is relatively uninjured." A female tech entered the shuttle and retrieved the crying baby.

The rest of the med techs followed Zarbon as he headed toward the hospital ward, their diagnostic scanners beeping sporadically as they scanned the Earthling's unmoving body.

"Internal bleeding," said one of the techs to Zarbon as they finally reached the medical facility. "Her spleen must have been ruptured." For a Saiya-jin, this wound would have healed itself within a matter of days, but Bulma was no Saiya-jin, and if she didn't get placed in a regen tank soon, she would die.

_Be strong for him, Bulma. Just hold on a little longer._

* * *

Vegeta stood, enveloped in his own ki, continuously radiating more power than he had in his entire life. Besides the few moments he'd achieved Ascension, his ki had plateaued at somewhere around 70,000 and try as he might, he couldn't seem to top that number.

"Captain Ginyuu would be pleased," said Freeza, the amusement slowly leaking back into his voice. "Though you don't have the finesse and flair for the dramatic that he has, do you?"

Vegeta grunted. He'd always hated the ridiculous gyrations and poses the Ginyuu Squad had prided themselves in. They made a mockery of what martial arts and battle readiness had always represented. Freeza was just trying to distract him, lure him into a false sense of security by exchanging petty conversation.

"I must admit, Vegeta, I can't recall the last monarch that has had the honor of seeing me transform," said the Ice-jin after Vegeta neglected to respond. He locked his stare on the Saiya-jin monarch, his barely concealed malice slithering just below the surface.

"Are we going to talk, or are we going to fight?" asked Vegeta with a confidence he didn't know he possessed.

"So eager to die," said Freeza, smiling and flashing his abnormally long canines. "I'm going to enjoy this."

Freeza didn't even bother phasing this time, he didn't have to. His new form gave him so much added speed that he could move even more quickly, making the ability to jump his energy from location to location superfluous.

He struck Vegeta with a resounding crack and Vegeta felt his ribs buckle under the pressure. It wasn't a fatal blow, but it would force him to favor his right side. The Ice-jin continued to bombard him with close contact attacks, counting on Vegeta's injury to slow him down. Vegeta tried his best to throw in a few hits of his own, but Freeza was too fast. He dealt blow after blow with stunning accuracy, crippling Vegeta and slowing him down even more.

_I have to find a way to make him ascend again, and soon._

Thought the Saiya-jin no Ou as he blocked a strike to his face.

Freeza smiled at him cruelly, sensing his enemy's weakness. Despite the intensity of their battle, Freeza was still only toying with him. He knew he could easily destroy Vegeta, he was just drawing the torture out. He wanted the Saiya-jin King to feel completely broken before killing him. Death, to the Ice-jin overlord, was a mercy.

* * *

"She's hemorrhaging," said the med tech as he continued to scan Bulma's abdomen with his hand held device.

"Fill the regen tank, _now,_" ordered Zarbon as several technicians hovered around the control panel to the nearest tank.

The machine monitoring Bulma's vitals began beeping erratically as Bulma's heart struggled to pump what little blood she had left to her vital organs.

"We're going to lose her!" said the med tech in a more urgent voice.

"What is the bloody problem?" asked Zarbon as he tossed one of the technicians out of his way. He examined the panel himself and realized that a list of supported species was scrolling across the view screen.

"There is no entry for humans, sir," answered a nervous doctor. "They have been considered extinct for so long that we never made a suitable match for the DNA suspension."

"She's been here all this time and you never took samples?" Zarbon was livid. Bulma had been living on Vegeta-sei for months. Now she was dying on Vegeta-sei because of an oversight.

"We did, sir. But we had trouble with some of the enzymes and with the war on the way..." he trailed off.

Zarbon muttered an oath under his breath and seriously considered blasting the incompetent Saiya-jin. How could they possibly have gotten caught up with other things, _especially_ with the war on the way? Didn't they realize that the greatest threat to their King's mate would take place _during_ the war?

"What are our options?" asked Zarbon, honing in his anger.

"The closest chromosomal match we have is Saiya-jin DNA. But her body could still reject it. The rejection process in itself would kill her."

Zarbon stared at the Saiya-jin doctor as his words sank in. Given the choice of Bulma dying now or later after they'd tried everything possible, Zarbon opted for the latter.

"Then _do _it, doctor, or you will have no need for a tank when I'm through with you."

The doctor turned back to the panel and typed in the appropriate commands. The tank would only take a few minutes to fill, but Zarbon wasn't sure if they even had a few minutes left.

Bulma was lying unconscious on the table, her face pale and translucent. Zarbon imagined he could see the creep of the life giving blood through her veins slowing down. The tech was leaning over her, some medical equipment at the ready. A defibrillator. Her heart was dying.

"Clear!" he said and placed the metal pads across her chest. Bulma's torso rose from the gurney, and the tech looked up at the screen indicating her heart beat. It was flat lining.

"Again!" said the tech and raised the dial on the small machine.

Zarbon turned back to the regen tank, watching the machine fill warily. The solution level was only half what it needed to be.

With a horrifying thud, Bulma's body landed back down on the table. The screen indicating her heart beat was still blank. Zarbon looked up at the med tech in alarm. He looked totally defeated.

They had lost her.

* * *

"No!" screamed the Saiya-jin no Ou, suddenly overcome by an acute and excruciating pain. He felt a shift in his mental barriers. The world was pain, fire, agony. Vegeta fell to his knees and pulled at his hair. He was burning, a piece of himself slowly incinerating. He was dying.

_Bulma!_

"Giving up already?" asked Freeza with genuine disappointment, obviously misunderstanding Vegeta's reaction.

Vegeta ignored the Ice-jin and continued to kneel, rocking back and forth slowly, gripping his scull so hard that blood started to drip down his face.

"Well, isn't this a nice little re-run," commented the lizard as he paced around Vegeta's tormented form. "Your father looked the same way. That is, after I killed your mother."

Vegeta looked up suddenly, pain filled eyes locked on the Ice-jin's gloating form.

"Oh yes, Vegeta. Didn't anyone ever tell you who _really_ put that bitch of a mother of yours out of her misery?"

Vegeta tried to think, slowly losing track of his thoughts as the pain rendered him incapable of conscious thought. His mother had been killed on a diplomatic mission after they'd rejected Freeza's offer to become an Associate World. The other diplomats had blown up the ship, hadn't they?

Freeza stomped over to Vegeta and lifted the warrior up by his hair. Vegeta barely felt it through the haze of gray tunnel vision that was starting to form behind his eyes. His limbs were going numb and he couldn't sense Bulma at all. He'd been shielding so strongly that he'd completely blocked her out.

"That's right, Vegeta. I killed her. I almost enjoy watching you bleed as much as her blood seeping into the tiles of my throne room." How many times had Vegeta watched his own blood drain onto the very same floor?

Freeza tossed the Saiya-jin roughly to the side and Vegeta tumbled bonelessly across the rough surface of the moon. He laid there, unmoving.

"Since we have time to talk now, let's have a history lesson, shall we?" Freeza whipped his tail back and forth behind him. The freak loved playing cat and mouse.

"Your father, being too narrow minded to see the wisdom of joining me, decided to plan a coup to try to overthrow my empire. Sounding familiar?" Freeza paused. "Fool that he was, the insolent monkey actually brought his whore of a queen with him. Funny how he was only too willing to bend his will to mine after her head rolled across my cold tile floor.

"And now here you are, the Chosen One. Pathetic. You're just as defenseless as your father. I wonder if your beloved Bulma's blood will be as satisfying to spill as your mother's?"

Freeza paced back and forth some more, willing Vegeta to stand and face him.

"I know about how she got here, Vegeta. My scientists picked up the signal only days after she arrived. Interdimensional travel. A fancy trick." He snickered. "The Saiya-jin populace must have rejoiced when the Earth woman arrived, fulfilling your prophecy, and making you their savior." Freeza laughed outright at that then tsked at the Saiya-jin King as if he were an insolent child.

"I must admit, the technology has its advantages. I'm going to use it to follow her and that disgusting half breed son of yours to their planet. Then I will travel to however many dimensions I have to and destroy Chikyuu again and again."

Vegeta's eyes opened and something within him clicked.

"And your family? Not sure what I'll do with the boy, quite yet. Obviously he can't be allowed to reach adulthood, he _is_ half human after all. But that delicious creature of yours, well, the men on my ship _do_ love having a good time."

_Never!_

Vegeta's eyes flashed blue as he stared at his hand and the smoke that rose from his blood drenched glove. Freeza was nowhere to be seen, the topography of the planet was decimated and a deep crevice marred the scorched earth. He was back, snapped out of the madness that was trying to overtake him.

Where had _that_ come from?

Vegeta felt out with the psychic part of himself, trying to analyze the trigger. This had happened to him before. He still couldn't feel the onna, but there was something else in the periphery—a creature rubbing against his mental walls, a beast waiting to be unleashed, a beast from within.

"My tail!" screeched the Ice-jin from some unknown location. "You stupid fucking monkey! You ruined my tail!"

The Ice-jin's tail flopped around, its nerves still firing even though they were disconnected from Freeza's body. Vegeta made sure his own tail was wrapped tightly around his waist. The sight of it sickened him.

* * *

Zarbon picked up Bulma's lifeless form with the utmost care and carried her over to the regen tank. The machine was full of fluid now, and the Saiya-jin DNA in it could do little to harm her at this point. If anything, it would keep her features intact indefinitely, or at least until they could arrange for a proper funeral.

Bulma's lips were blue, surprisingly out of place in spite of her blue coloration. How would he tell Vegeta? Had Vegeta even survived her passing? Zarbon glanced out the window and up at the expanse of space. Somewhere out there, Vegeta was fighting for his life.

Zarbon looked morosely at the looming piece of technology. It was one of the most ingenious pieces of medical equipment he had ever encountered, using its occupant's own DNA to expedite the healing process. But it could not bring someone back from the dead.

* * *

Vegeta felt the moon shake as Freeza continued his stream of curses. Something was happening.

Moon rocks lifted from the surface of the planet and cracks chipped away at the rock from the crevice he'd created. With a sudden jolt, a large piece of the moon broke away. Freeza rose from amidst the rubble, his pale body illuminated by the distant reflection of the system's star.

Though this level of transformation gave him a slighter build than the previous, it was no less terrifying. Nearly all of Freeza's body was a milky white color, with a few purplish exceptions. His eyes glowed an even more unnatural blood red, and power radiated from his still form as he continued to rise and free himself of remaining debris.

His power level had to be over two million, and he'd regrown his tail.

The moon shook again, the celestial body warning Vegeta of the battle to come. He'd finally gotten Freeza to completely power up. The Ice-jin was done with the bullshit. Now he just wanted the Saiya-jin King to die.

Vegeta drew from his drained resources. His reserves were low after releasing the last ki blast. It would be several minutes before he could call on such a powerful attack again. Though he was badly wounded, it was time to do what needed to be done.

"I think I will take _personal_ delight in torturing her, Vegeta," said Freeza with evil conviction. "One way or another, your _mate,_" he spat the word as if it were disgusting, "will scream my name."

Vegeta stared at the monster, hatred and self-loathing drifting away as his thoughts focused on his task.

Freeza raised his hands, threw his head back, and began to gather another ki blast in the empty space above his head. The purple orb grew slowly, fizzing and dancing with electrical current. It didn't matter how fast or large the ki blast was. Vegeta wasn't looking to escape.

_Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan… Rash'kin a sonat su ma. Skar shinta mun a kin'moshan…_

Seeing no other option, through the pain of his severed tie to Bulma, and the sure knowledge of his impending death, Vegeta began to chant the words that had always given him strength. He may not have achieved the Legendary, but this destiny was equally honorable. It was something he had chosen for himself.

His family and Earth would live on.

The Saiya-jin King, seeing Freeza reaching the end of his energy draw, began to power up once again. If he could combine their energies just precisely, and attack Freeza full on while the blast was within an appropriate radius, Freeza would die with him.

He chanted to himself, pulling the energy out of every available resource. He would drain himself dry before he would allow the Ice-jin to live. He only needed to leave enough of himself to launch at Freeza at the last minute.

The sensation was not as uncomfortable as he'd imagined it. It somehow felt liberating to let himself slip into placidity as he drained himself of the very life force that was sustaining him.

The Saiya-jin no Ou, the most powerful Saiya-jin since the rise of the Legendary, let himself fall into the deep abyss of some unknown emotion as he prepared to sacrifice himself. He closed his eyes.

And suddenly he was back on Earth. He was standing on his balcony, staring at the stars, searching for his lost planet. Bulma stood beside him, her head resting on his shoulders, her aqua hair blowing gently in the cool night air.

He could sense everything. The smell of the Chikyuu-jin night laced with cinnamon and the feel of the concrete beneath his bare feet. Of all the galaxies he'd conquered, of all the planets he'd visited and destroyed, not one called to him the way his mate's strange blue planet did.

And then he realized it. It was a self fulfilled prophecy a long time in coming. He'd just been too stubborn to admit it. He was never meant to rule Vegeta-sei. He was never meant to use the time machine he'd fabricated with Bulma's father to reclaim his lost birthright. By some sick twist of fate, it was all meant to go horribly wrong.

Through it all, Earth meant more to him than he ever could have imagined. It was not just a planet he had been trapped on, Earth was his _home._

_Earth_ was his destiny.

_Can't you feel it...?_

Bulma's words echoed.

It all fell into place as the pieces fit together with a beautiful clarity.

The beast within him woke, sensing his acceptance. It stretched and became something tangible. Something real_. _

Vegeta's eyes locked onto the Ice-jin as he drew the remaining life force from his dying body and was illuminated by a golden light.

But these eyes no longer belonged to the Saiya-jin King, they were the shimmering blue eyes of the Legendary.


	48. chapter fortyseven

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Forty-Seven**

Zarbon walked down the hall that lead to the King's quarters. He couldn't stand to be in the medical ward anymore. Standing in the abandoned room and watching Bulma's body float eerily in the tank was not something he could do for more than a few minutes at a time. He didn't need to guard her anymore. It was too late to worry about avoiding assassination attempts now, not after everything that had happened.

He remembered the first time he'd met her and how he'd wanted to kill her. Now, as he planned her funeral, he would do anything to bring her back. Funny how things could change so dramatically only after a few months.

Trunks gazed up at the reptilian warrior who held him in his arms. He had an empty expression, his eyes the same striking aqua as Bulma's. Though the med techs made sure that the boy was well nourished and cared for, their very Saiya-jin nature prevented them from providing him with the nurturing he desperately needed. Few Saiya-jins had ever even been exposed to a child this young before. Their habit of growing infants in tanks and then sending them off to strange worlds prevented any attachment they might otherwise have had. It was completely detached, business-like, military. It was Saiya-jin.

Needless to say, Zarbon was the closest thing to a true parent Trunks had left on the planet.

The child had been disturbingly quiet since the death of his mother. Not that he'd ever been fussy. But now it was as if the young Heir had given up hope too. Zarbon looked in the boy's eyes and could only see a reflection of his own misgivings.

Having reached the door to Vegeta's suite, Zarbon stopped and composed himself. None of the Saiya-jins showed any physical sign that they were mourning the loss of their King. But he wasn't a Saiya-jin, and none of them knew what he did. None of them knew exactly what Vegeta would have had to do to Ascend.

Two days had passed since the horrible events on Freeza's ship and somewhere deep in the recesses of himself, Zarbon knew what must have happened. Freeza didn't return to destroy the planet as they'd all feared, but Vegeta hadn't returned victorious either. After all the research he'd done, he could only come to one tragic conclusion. The Saiya-jin no Ou had finally discovered how to Ascend. And while Freeza was dead, Vegeta had sacrificed himself to save them all.

He opened the door and stepped into the room. The light from the hallway cast shadows on the furniture within, only a narrow band of light penetrating the complete darkness. Vegeta had always preferred his rooms dim.

Zarbon stiffly walked into the darkness and placed Vegeta's son face up on the bed. He'd grown enough to not be completely helpless if he were to turn over while lying on the large mattress. And his nap was long overdue.

Rather than lingering, Zarbon made his way over to the enormous bay windows and pulled back the black out curtains. The sky was dark, and through the glass he could see billions of stars flickering in alternating patterns. Occasionally a piece of Freeza's ship would burn its way across sky, finally drawn down from orbit by the planet's enormous gravity. A team had already been launched to retrieve the ship's core before it struck planet side and destroyed the whole system.

Radditz had been extremely thorough when completing his final mission. None of them knew his whereabouts. It would have been suicide for him to return to Vegeta-sei anyway. He'd practically orchestrated the whole mess with Freeza. It didn't matter that the planet and Heir had been saved. To Saiya-jins, ends never justified the means. Unless they involved intergalactic conquest.

Zarbon turned away from the window and sat at Vegeta's desk, noticing the rhythmic flashing of the red light that indicated there was a new message. He stared at the screen. Well, Vegeta certainly wasn't going to be reading it. He opened the console and it blinked to life almost immediately, a message on display. Tapping the touch screen with his index finger, Zarbon sat back and waited for the video to play.

* * *

"If you're watching this, don't even think about stopping me," started Vegeta's voice as he appeared on the view screen, "I've already left planet side and am decided on what has to be done.

"By now you know that Freeza will not stop until he destroys all of us. I am not foolish enough to believe that after I die his thirst for Saiya-jin blood will be sated."

Zarbon leaned back in his chair.

"I'm going to his ship to deliberate terms of battle, Zarbon. The palace personnel have already been informed of how you volunteered to plant yourself on Freeza's ship as a spy. They know you were sent to bring down the true traitor and retrieve my mate and the Heir. They will not harm you when you return." He paused, as if his next statement was difficult.

"Zarbon," Vegeta stared directly at him through the screen, "there are some things you may not know about the changes that have been happening on Vegeta-sei. Primarily, my part in how Bulma arrived here. And secondly, how _I_ arrived here. Or at least the altered personality you've been experiencing for the past several months."

_What?_

"That's right, Zarbon, Bulma and I are _both_ from Chikyuu." Vegeta let his words sink in.

Zarbon stared at the screen and blinked.

_How in the hell...?_

"In our dimension, Bulma and I became bonded by accident during the _Khon'daia na_. She absorbed half of my energy while I was meditating and an irrevocable link was formed between us.

"While I may be from a different dimension than the Prince Vegeta you have watched grow, most of our personality traits are the same. You can therefore imagine how I responded to the news of our bond. The idea of it sickened me. I even contemplated killing her. But I couldn't. Given no other choice, we performed the rituals necessary to solidify the bond.

"The same strange attachment that kept me from killing the onna prevented me from leaving outright. But when she got between me and what I thought was my destiny, I decided I needed to take action.

"Ironically, Bulma's father is the president of the very same Capsule Corp Freeza encountered on Earth in this dimension. The old man is equally as brilliant as his daughter. Together, we'd been working on a temporary time travel device for over a year. You see, in _my_ dimension, Vegeta-sei, not Chikyuu, was destroyed by Freeza. I thought that if I could go there, aid in battle, I would be able to change something, anything about my miserable fate on Earth. I could have my planet back, my people, my destiny. Fuck, I could just get _away_." He scowled.

"Unfortunately, I was overly confident in the device and chose to do the preliminary testing on myself rather than using a probe. After Bulma went to sleep one night, I decided to try it out, thinking that I could easily return to our own planet before she woke.

"The next thing I remember was being in the royal courtyard on Vegeta-sei, confused about how I'd gotten there, the place between my shoulder blades searing. Somehow my consciousness must have fused with _your_ Vegeta's upon arrival. The only part of the true me that remained was the burn mark on my back, the symbol of my bond with Bulma.

"I didn't think she was going to follow me," he said, his displeasure evident. "The only explanation I can come to is that she must have found my body before the transfer was complete and been sucked into the field herself.

"I've attached a copy of the specs for the time travel device. You _must_ give these to her. Of course, being who she is, she knows about interdimensional travel already," Vegeta grunted indignantly, "but she can escape much faster if all she has to do is assemble the equipment."

Vegeta stared at the camera in a moment of silence.

"I do not expect to return. But I don't expect that bastard Freeza to return either. Don't wait for me. Bulma's safety and the safety of the Heir..." He trailed off, some alien emotion choking his words. "Zarbon, they don't belong here.

"For everything you have done, thank you." Vegeta smiled sadly in a very un-Saiya-jin way.

Zarbon stared at the frozen face of the man he'd sworn fealty to. He ran a shaky hand through his long hair as the video feed went blank and equipment specs flashed up on the screen. He'd been right all along.

* * *

A few systems away, Vegeta's body floated aimlessly through asteroid laden space, his form motionless. The battle suit he'd been wearing was torn beyond recognition, a few scraps of material and breastplate barely clinging to the contours of his body.

Lingering on the brink of unconsciousness, Vegeta watched numbly as nearby asteroids collided. They were all that remained of the planet and moon; a reminder of the battle he'd barely escaped with his life.

The Saiya-jin King still didn't know how he'd done it.

Freeza had been intent on sending Vegeta to whatever hell was awaiting him. The radius of the ki sphere he'd planned to use was larger than the small moon. And then something had happened. Some unknown beast within him had stirred and stretched against his body until it felt like his skin could barely contain it. It burst from him with golden light and a self knowledge he'd been lacking for years. The Saiya-jin no Ou had Ascended.

Now, floating around in space and contemplating everything that had happened, he almost wished he had died. He wished he hadn't been so powerful, but only powerful enough to stop Freeza. Maybe then he could escape the numbness that so thoroughly consumed him. His link with Bulma was completely severed, and keeping track of even the most fleeting thought was a trial.

He stared down at the hands that had defeated the most powerful being in the known universe and didn't feel anything.

Was this what his father had felt after his mother's death? Was this what had driven him so mad that he'd auctioned off his son to an evil tyrant? No, it couldn't have been. He could never do that to Trunks. Not even after this terrible pain consumed him. He could never abandon their child—his only link left to the woman he...

Vegeta stirred, regathering the parts of himself that remained. He needed to return to Vegeta-sei and attend to the Heir. No doubt Zarbon was taking care of him, but he needed to see Trunks for himself. He needed to know that everything that happened wasn't just a dream.

He powered up, hair suddenly golden, and opened piercing blue eyes.

Finding the trigger within himself came more easily now. There was no need to force it. That was what had been the problem all along. Ascension wasn't something that could be forced, it was more like breathing, the act of allowing the power to fill him. It was simultaneously a complete self knowledge and sacrifice of self. It was the hardest lesson he'd ever learned.

He flexed his fingers, clenching and unclenching them, allowing himself to revel in the sensation of overwhelming power. It was unlike anything he'd ever felt before—pure and alive.

But it wasn't what he'd been searching for all this time. It wasn't what he needed.

Glowing with the awesome power of the Legendary, Vegeta pictured his home planet and blinked out of sight.

* * *

Vegeta-sei rotated steadily as its monarch floated miles above the atmosphere, waiting for the largest continent to come into view. He waited patiently, in no rush to return to the palace and the responsibilities that were facing him there.

The King sank down into the upper atmosphere, the moisture from gathering clouds beading on his bronze skin. All was quiet in the forest when he finally touched ground. The birds around him had silenced, sensing a nearby predator.

Not wanting to alert the other Saiya-jin warriors of his presence, Vegeta powered down, caging the beast within him. It paced in the background of his mind, unhappy about being locked away once again. He took a calming breath, and the beast slowly faded to little more than a memory that he could access at will.

The grass felt soft against his bare feet, and he paused briefly to remove the tattered remains of his battle armor. It fell to the ground with a soft clank and he walked on, moving carefully through the brush that would lead him to the royal gardens.

He could sense his son's ki. It was strong and lacking any form of distress. He didn't even bother trying to sense Bulma's ki signature, he already knew where to find her. The knot in his chest tightened.

Pushing the last branch to the side, Vegeta gazed upon the royal palace. The waves of the great lake broke against the cliff it was perched on, and the red sky reflected across the water's surface. It was a sight he'd seen a thousand times, but now it didn't move him. The palace only represented the embodiment of the reasons he'd come here. Those reasons seemed meaningless now.

He padded along, slowly making his way up the rocky hill. The gardens were in bloom and despite everything that had been going on, the gardeners obviously hadn't been neglecting their duties. Flowers were abundant and their fragrance perfumed the air with the spicy scent he could only attribute to Vegeta-sei.

Once close enough to be seen from the palace walls, Vegeta flickered out of sight again, materializing just inside the abandoned part of the castle. He was surprised to find that no one was on guard duty. They had gone lax, assuming their greatest threat, Lord Freeza, was never returning. He was suddenly angry. Complacency was never acceptable. And his son still needed protection. If he could enter the palace so easily, so could others. He would kill for this oversight.

The Saiya-jin no Ou stalked down the hallway, keeping to the deep shadows the flickering torch light provided. They'd never bothered updating the technology on this side of the palace, but he found the shadows and roughness of the architecture suited him while in this particular mood. Met by the last heavy wooden door, Vegeta phased to the hallway beyond. The lights were brighter here, fluorescent, and he could no longer smell the greasy torches that had lit his way through the dungeons. He'd finally made it to the more modern palace proper.

In this part of the palace he was very near the climate control equipment and he could hear the gentle hum of the gravity machinery. The royal and medical wings were still set curiously at 1 g.

Vegeta wiped at his face, trying to clear off some of the dirt and dust particles as well as clear his mind. He looked down at his filthy hands and contemplated showering before proceeding onto his next task. But the thought was only very fleeting, an excuse to postpone the inevitable.

The medical wing was also abandoned when he got there. Though the small hospital was only for Saiya-jin royalty, there had always been a doctor and a few techs rummaging around or working on paperwork. A few pieces of medical equipment beeped and the automatic lights started to blink on as the motion detectors sensed him. He called out to the computer, dimming the lights. His eyes were still sensitive after being in the dark expanse of space for so long.

Bulma's form floated limply in the fluid-filled regen tank. The back lighting made everything within a ten foot radius glow blue, including her naked body. Her skin was remarkably unmarred. Glancing at the attached medical display, Vegeta realized it was turned off. Her vital signs were no longer of any importance at this stage.

He hadn't realized how long her hair had gotten while they were trapped on Vegeta-sei, and he watched as it floated around her in slow, undulating patterns, giving her the illusion of a halo.

How many months had they been here? How many months had he carelessly endangered her life? Was this the price he had to pay to finally discover his destiny? Given the choice, he decided he didn't want it anymore. He didn't want anything if it meant losing _her_.

Taking one last shaky breath, he walked up and placed his calloused hand against the glass, blinking back some alien emotion. He stood there, motionless, his eyes downcast, and pressed his forehead against the tank.

_Vegeta?_

Her voice was weak, barely an echo of a sound. He brushed it aside as an inopportune memory and screwed his eyes shut even tighter, grimacing. Had he finally snapped? Was he finally going crazy? He didn't think he could stand being haunted by her for the rest of his life.

_Vegeta..._

He felt something within him wake with a start. If this was a memory, it was a damned persistent one. Unable to do anything but hope, Vegeta opened his eyes a peered through the murky fluid of the tank.

Bulma's eyes were open.


	49. chapter fortyeight

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Forty-Eight**

Zarbon heard the commotion down the hall before anyone knocked on the door. He wasn't sure what was going on, but it was something important enough that it required his presence.

"Come," he said with authority after the first knock.

The Saiya-jin guard entered the room, the excitement barely concealed on his face.

"Well?" asked Zarbon, not bothering to disguise his irritation.

"It's the King, sir. He's returned."

Zarbon's heart leapt into his throat. Vegeta had _returned_?

* * *

The King of the Saiya-jins stared at his mate's open eyes through the clear glass of the regen tank. Was this some sort of trick? Had her eyes merely been open the whole time and he never noticed?

_Vegeta_.

She said again, this time with more conviction. He couldn't tell if her lips were moving. The breathing mask still covered the lower half of her face.

Vegeta let all of his remaining mental barriers slip, allowing the static of everyone's thoughts to seep into his mind. He could sense everyone in the palace, including the guards who'd already discovered his return. Inhaling deeply, he filtered them out, one by one, searching for the one link that was uniquely Bulma's. And there it was, weak and frayed, but a few threads of their link still existed. She pressed her hand against the glass feebly.

_Bulma!_

Vegeta pressed his own hand against the glass and felt out with his ki. He could sense her more easily now, something had changed.

He depressed the regen tank's control console on button. Flashing across the screen were her vitals, all very strong and steady. After assuring himself that she was in full health, Vegeta pulled the release trigger, and the viscous fluid began draining. He didn't know how it happened, and he didn't know who'd put her in the tank, but somehow his mate was alive.

The solution level wasn't lowering quickly enough. Surely there was a more efficient way to drain the damn thing.

Vegeta opened the hatch and the fluid from the tank splashed against the floor.

_Much better._

"C-c-cold..." she made out through chattering teeth. Though the back light had turned off, Bulma's skin still shone an unhealthy shade of blue.

_Shit, of course. She's freezing._

Vegeta thought and hastily made his way to the nearest cabinet, rummaging for a blanket. The temperature difference between the tank and the medical room had to be at least 20 degrees. Satisfied that he'd found the warmest one, he returned to the tank, wrapped Bulma in the blanket, and lifted her into his arms. The nearest gurney was only a few feet away. He laid her down, using his ki to expedite the heating process.

She continued to shiver, her shakes nearly uncontrollable. Whatever was affecting her, it was more than the climate. Vegeta raised the temperature a little higher, laying down beside her. Their link had been so close to being severed, dangerously close. It had nearly driven him to madness. Who knew what it was doing to her.

Bulma wrapped her arms around Vegeta, her cold body in stark contrast with Vegeta's warmth. He resisted the urge to hiss at the sudden change in temperature, not wanting her to misinterpret his behavior. He carefully placed his arms around the fragile woman, pressing her against him with a desperation he couldn't explain.

Why? Why had it taken him all these months to figure this out?

Vegeta stilled himself. No matter what happened, regardless of recent revelations and coming unbearably close to losing her, he was still resisting an undeniable truth: how lost he was without her.

Vegeta felt Bulma's body shake with more intensity. She was sobbing silently. He held her tighter, burying his face in the smell of her coconut-scented hair. She pushed away from him so she could see his face.

"Vegeta, you're..." she started and stared at him in amazement, tears streaming down her porcelain skin.

"Silence, woman, you're going to make yourself sick," he said. His voice was remarkably hoarse.

A lock of Bulma's hair fell across her face as she shifted deeper into the blankets. Vegeta grunted in distaste and picked up the damp piece of hair, waving it before Bulma's face as if it offended him. He really hated having to groom her constantly.

"Onna, we have _got_ to find a way to stop this from happening," he said and shook the aqua strands for emphasis.

Bulma laughed.

* * *

Zarbon watched the Saiya-jin King and his mate through the medical ward window. At least twenty or more guards were crowded around, thrilled by the return of their obviously triumphant King.

Had only two days gone by?

Freeza had been dead scarcely 48 hours and already the atmosphere on Vegeta-sei was changing, normalizing. He glanced around the hall and at the smiling faces of the Saiya-jin warriors. Maybe everything wasn't lost after all.

* * *

Vegeta closed the door to his quarters softly behind him. Bulma was safe, under the constant watch of the medical staff. They were performing all sorts of tests, trying to understand what had happened. No one could believe she'd survived.

The Saiya-jin no Ou took a breath, it was something he did more frequently now; consciously calming himself. He stepped further into the room, searching for the ki he knew he'd find there.

Trunks laid back down on the bed, his breathing slow and steady. He looked so much like his mother, but the angular eyes and rigid brow gave his Saiya-jin heritage away. Then there was his tail, softly swaying back and forth across the bed.

The mattress depressed as Vegeta sat beside his son.

He would train him to be the best fighter the universe had ever seen. Half-breed or not, Trunks would be the mightiest of all Saiya-jin progeny now that his father had the means of Ascension. But it was still too early for that. Bulma would no doubt strangle him if the boy were injured at such a delicate age.

Vegeta smiled.

It didn't matter. There would be plenty of time.

* * *

"Vegeta," came Zarbon's voice from around a corner.

Vegeta turned and saw the reptile leaning against a nearby wall, his body concealed from the rest of the guards by a few stone pillars. Just having left his personal quarters and the sleeping form of Trunks, the King was so consumed in his thoughts that he hadn't noticed Zarbon's ki.

"Zarbon," replied Vegeta, barely inclining his head. He didn't seem upset at his oversight.

Zarbon looked at the Saiya-jin no Ou appraisingly, noticing that he'd showered and changed. He could vividly remember the sight of the young Saiya-jin covered in caked mud and moon dust, holding onto Bulma as if his world depended on her. It was a moment that would be forever imprinted on Zarbon's mind. Now, in contrast, the King looked immaculate. He was properly groomed and donned a fresh black battle suit. It was nothing like the light armor he usually wore with the crest of the House of Vegeta-sei embroidered across his chest. If he weren't radiating a base ki level over a half a million, he would have looked just like any other Saiya-jin.

Vegeta returned Zarbon's stare and continued down the hall, opening the door to the Senate council room. Zarbon followed.

Once the door was closed, Vegeta sat down at the head of the table. The last time the seat had been occupied, it was by his father. The Senate seemed like little more than a bad joke now. He doubted Vegeta was going to let any governing body on Vegeta-sei influence his decisions after the failures of the former King.

"I saw the recording." Zarbon wasted little time.

"I assumed you had," responded the Saiya-jin no Ou cooly, folding his arms across his chest. The gesture looked surprisingly regal as the starlight from the window behind him emphasized and outlined his form. Vegeta stared at him, waiting for the onslaught of questions he knew he was about to endure.

Zarbon took a seat, clasping his hands in front of him. He pondered his reflection in the polished glass of the table's surface, letting the silence linger.

"How did you do it?" he finally asked, abruptly changing the subject.

Vegeta smirked and pressed back against his seat. This wasn't the question he'd been expecting.

"What? You doubted me?" asked Vegeta, turning his head away. It was obvious what Zarbon was getting at.

"Never," responded Zarbon with sincerity. Vegeta raised his lowered eyes and looked at Zarbon. Getting the information out of the stubborn Saiya-jin not going to be easy.

"Ok," said Zarbon finally, "I'll start by telling you what _I_ know." Vegeta inclined his head again.

"You asked me to do research about the Legendary, and at first all I found were the same stories from folktales. But then I went to the Southern Continent and found several copies of ancient texts buried in the disaster you people call a library." Vegeta glared at Zarbon, offended by the insult to his race. "The translation was difficult, but finally I was able read the prophecy as it was first written," Zarbon added with less judgment.

"The Legendary," Zarbon began, "or the idea of Ascension was originally a religious ideal spoken of by the Ancient Ones. To these men, Ascending was more like taking a closer step to a deity than a physical change. For years, the transformation was highly ritualized and any physical advantages were secondary in value to the of self-enlightenment of the Chosen One.

"They created a series of chants designed to foretell the coming of the Legendary and spent hours meditating, purifying themselves so they could become the perfect vessels of an awesome power.

"But not just any warrior could Ascend. Certain criteria had to be met by all who hoped to become the Legendary, and each age of Ascension had its own specifications. The Ancient Ones could predict how and why the Chosen One would Ascend quite accurately. They'd done it on multiple occasions. The last Super Saiya-jin was not the first, Vegeta. Nor was he expected to be the last.

"Unfortunately, by the time of the last Ascension, the Ancients had all but lost their influence. Technology was the new god, and they were thrown out of power, their texts thrown into storage. Though the Saiya-jins had the means to record these valuable pieces of their history in digital format, it was seldom done. Most of the texts were lost, perhaps becoming the personal property of a former noble. Frankly, it's remarkable the transcripts were never destroyed during the Great War that bred the last Legendary. I had a hell of a time trying to track them down myself.

"Anyway, the prophecy that we know of today was spread entirely by word of mouth, edited and changed after years of reinterpretation. Given the cultural changes Vegeta-sei was going through, only a small number of Saiya-jins even took stock in what seemed like a superstitious fairy tale. It wasn't until the previous Legendary finally Ascended that people once again started to believe in the nearly-forgotten prophecies.

"But at that point, what did they have left? Pieces of a chant the Ancient Ones had used to harness their power and a few tall tales. The texts were gone, their location unknown. All the remaining Saiya-jins could do was look to their elders to recite the stories they'd heard hundreds of times as children and never believed.

"Only a few remaining facts were left about the circumstances surrounding the next Ascension: the Legendary would rise during a time of great need and crisis. Secondly, he would lead his race to victory. Presumably, he would arise from a line of warriors from the Southern Continent."

_Bardock was a warrior from the Southern Continent, wasn't he?_

Vegeta thought as he absorbed the new information.

"As you know, the Royal House of Vegeta-sei is the oldest enduring line of warriors from the Southern Continent. It was natural for the Saiya-jins to assume someone of your line would be the next to Ascend. And when Freeza came into the picture, it seemed that if ever the Saiya-jins needed a savior, it was now. The Legendary would Ascend." Zarbon paused.

"But all of those parts of this particular prophecy were obvious, uncomplicated. There was one minor detail that had them all baffled, myself included. That was the role of a tiny planet called Earth."

Vegeta's eyes closed. Before arriving in this dimension, he hadn't known that last part. Earth. God, how it made him sick. He thought about Goku. The moron was as human as he was stupid, and the fool had a father from the Southern Continent. No wonder he'd Ascended.

"From what I've gathered, most Saiya-jins ignored that last detail, thinking it the result of misinterpretation. Earth? Who the hell even knew where that was? But Freeza never took chances. He drove your father mad, created anarchy within your empire, and destroyed the planet. I don't think anyone thought twice about it. At least, not until it was gone.

"_I_ even dismissed the last part of the prophecy, denying Bulma's appearance as merely a coincidence or unfortunate complication. Her arrival had everyone wondering if they'd been wrong. And then when you told me about how she'd recited the Ancient chant to you, I started to wonder. As you'd already surmised, it could not be a coincidence that she'd come here. After my research, that was blatantly obvious. Somehow, she had a part in the fulfillment of the prophecy, even if that meant that it was her son, a hybrid, who was destined to be the Chosen One.

"But once I saw the message you left when I made it back from Freeza's ship, however, I knew I'd been wrong. Trunks and Bulma were not the only Earthlings Freeza had to worry about on Vegeta-sei." He gave Vegeta a knowing look.

"In the very least, I knew you'd gone to sacrifice yourself. To your knowledge, it was the only way you could destroy Freeza without Ascending. But you see, through every text, every different interpretation, the theme was not power or personal gain, but sacrifice. In order to Ascend, Vegeta, you would have to sacrifice yourself. You could only Ascend by committing the ultimate act of self sacrifice. Though it didn't seem like it at the time, you unknowingly chose the outcome. You _chose_ your destiny."

Vegeta pushed out of the chair and stood at the window, his tail lashing behind him. It was his favorite thing to do when he was upset, whether from this dimension or another. He didn't want Zarbon to see his face when he felt uncertain.

"He was going to follow them," said Vegeta after clearing his throat. "He was going to follow them to Earth and destroy it in that dimension too."

Zarbon stood, walking over to the closed off form of the Saiya-jin King. He tentatively placed his hand on Vegeta's shoulder. It was more comfort than he'd ever attempted in the past and more than Vegeta had ever allowed.

Vegeta let his mental barriers slide just the slightest.

_He was going to destroy my family—my home._

Thought Vegeta. He sounded ridiculous, even within his own head. He was weak, sentimental, changed forever. He was human.


	50. chapter fortynine

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Forty-Nine**

A week went by and everyday Bulma grew stronger. Her resting ki was no longer as alarmingly low as it had been before her accident. Even the doctor had some trouble explaining how it had all happened. Apparently, though the medical display equipment had been turned off, the machines were still recording biologically what was going on in the tank.

After tirelessly going over all the data, the med techs discovered the secret. Though Bulma's heart had stopped beating, her brain was still pulsing with electrical activity. She'd only gone into a light coma. After a few minutes of floating in the tank, Bulma's body had not merely tolerated the Saiya-jin DNA, it had used it and incorporated it into her genome. The regen tank had saved her. Not that Bulma would be going out sparring with the Saiya-jins any time soon, her ki was still too low for that, but her body was now almost as resilient as her son's.

It was Trunks. Somehow her pregnancy with the Saiya-jin hybrid had prevented the formation of the antibodies that would cause an adverse reaction to the foreign DNA. She already had the DNA inside her so her immune system didn't recognize the alien genome as, well, alien. In reality, her pregnancy had been more dangerous than being submerged in the regen tank for a few days.

Bulma stared at the sleeping baby in her arms. He'd gotten so big. It seemed like everyday she noticed something new about him. And everyday he looked just a little more like his father.

Vegeta was surprisingly withdrawn during the day. He was constantly busying himself and surrounded by engineers. Bulma wasn't sure what to make of the strange behavior, but for now she was just content to spend time with her son. Her near-death experience had given her a new outlook on life and she became less concerned about returning to Earth.

But despite Vegeta's neglect during daylight hours, he always returned early enough to put Trunks to sleep. Bulma watched as Vegeta spoke in his native tongue to the boy, telling him stories of great Saiya-jin warriors of the past. After enough time, Bulma even began recognizing and understanding some of the lilting cadences of the Saiya-jin language. And, she was sorry to admit, it sounded _nothing_ like cave man.

* * *

"When are you going to tell her?" asked Zarbon cautiously. Neither of them had done more than mention the message Vegeta had left for Zarbon before his suicide mission. "You know you have to."

"I know, Zarbon, I know," said Vegeta with irritation and something else in his voice. He continued typing specs into the computer.

_The Legendary reduced to staring at a computer screen, how prosaic. _

He thought, hoping Zarbon was taking the hint. He'd barely returned with his life and the green creature was already nagging him to death. They fell into an extended silence.

Thankfully, the preliminary design was coming along as planned. It had only taken a few tweaks to broaden the field. It would all be worked out more quickly than he'd hoped. He began scribbling some notes on a stack of papers next to the computer console.

"You can't put it off forever," Zarbon's voice interrupted his thoughts once again.

"Enough, damn you, enough!" proclaimed Vegeta, throwing his writing utensil to the ground and standing abruptly.

Zarbon peered at him through half-slit eyes.

"She's going to figure it out."

_Assuming she hasn't already._

Vegeta narrowed his eyes and stared at his advisor and friend, his continued irritation evident.

"Whatever," he finally said, and without further ado, stomped out of the room, muttering curses the whole way.

* * *

"Let me guess," said Bulma, refraining from facing the angry Saiya-jin, "you've got something you need to tell me."

Vegeta stood in the middle of the room, arms crossed, scowl firmly in place. He'd stomped not so quietly into her lab about five minutes earlier and planted himself in front of her, obviously nonplussed. It didn't take a mind reader to realize something had gotten his panties all in a bunch. Of course, it didn't hurt that she really _could_ read his mind either.

"Woman!" he said. "While I am delighted you've finally been cultivating your minuscule mental abilities, you will refrain from using that tone with me."

Bulma turned to face him, her eyebrows raised. Something had _really_ gotten his panties in a bunch.

"Alright. Out with it," she said, crossing her own arms, and leaning back further in her chair. Vegeta was silent. She was glad Trunks wasn't with her. He never reacted well to his father's outbursts.

"If this is about the device you've been working on, Vegeta, I already know." She turned away, typing something into her computer console. Vegeta remained silent, apparently in shock.

"You're terrible at secrecy. You know, you're not the only one the guards swore fealty to," she said offhandedly. She sighed. "Do you honestly think I hadn't figured it out? You're mated to one of the most intelligent females on this side of the galaxy and the fact that I have a brain in my head still astonishes you." She sighed again, this time in exasperation.

Bulma stopped typing and began twirling Vegeta's mother's ring around her finger. Its jewels glittered in the artificial light. It was a nervous habit she'd picked up as of late.

"Look. I figured out weeks ago what happened." She still wasn't facing him. "Once the other scientists tracked the irregular quantum signal around the time of our arrival, it was easy to put two and two together." She turned again, lacing her fingers together and resting her head on top of them. "Time travel."

Vegeta stared at her, his face hard and his tail wound tightly around his waist. He was playing this one close to home. Bulma just continued to stare him down.

"At first, it didn't make sense to me why you were spending so much time with my father. I figured that maybe you were working on some upgrades for the GR. But while rummaging through his desk one night searching for some of the communication chip specs, I stumbled across a sketch." She paused. "At the time, I didn't think anything of it. Dad was always working on crack pot ideas for new projects. If we could violate some physical laws with encapsulation, why not look into time travel?

"Even after I arrived here I had no idea how we were suddenly transported to a planet that no longer existed."

Vegeta twitched ever so slightly.

"At least not in our dimension," she added to soften the blow. "But quantum interference could only mean one thing: interdimensional travel. Before now, it was only theoretical, but it makes sense when time manipulation becomes part of the picture. And it explains everything that happened." Her words were now almost accusatory.

"I've done quite a bit of research since I've been here. Did you know that some scientists have theorized that two copies of the same entity cannot exist within the same dimension?"

Vegeta didn't respond.

"Anyway, the implications are pretty easy to understand," she said when she took his lack of response for ignorance. Her tone became pedantic. "You occupied the same niche as the already existing Vegeta, so, according to this theory, physical law forced your two personalities to be fused to correct the error. Your personality became the lesser of the two, hibernating within this Vegeta's body until our bond forced you into dominance.

"Being that my planet was already destroyed, and I never existed here, I had no such problems," she added as an afterthought.

"Somehow, you arrived here several days before me. The only explanation I can find is that though our two dimensions are parallel, their timelines must not be. What was only minutes on Earth could have amounted to days or weeks here." She stared at him, waiting for some sort of response.

Vegeta said nothing.

"That has to be what happened. You tried to use my father's device to travel through time and something went wrong. Didn't it, Vegeta?"

She let the question hang it the air, rhetorical. They both knew the answer already. His silence only confirmed his guilt. He really _had_ tried to leave her. Their relationship meant nothing to him other than an obligation, an untimely bond formed because of her own stupid curiosity. Even though it would have been excruciatingly painful for him to separate himself from her, he was going to do it anyway.

Bulma stood and walked to the window in her lab. She'd known all along, but somehow it hurt so much more having everything confirmed by the man she'd grown to trust, even love.

"When did you find out, exactly?" asked Vegeta after several moments of silence, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. If it were anyone else, it would have come off as a nervous reaction.

"About a week before Freeza arrived. I'd already worked everything out by the time I brought it up to you in our quarters. I wanted to see how you'd react. But I didn't say anything, Vegeta. I just couldn't be that selfish." She sighed, burying her face in her palms and shaking her head in a futile motion. After a few minutes, Bulma lifted her head slowly, looking up at Vegeta as if she'd just had an epiphany.

"And _that's_ why you're working on this new project. You want to send us back to Earth," she said, placing a distinct ostracism on the word 'us'. Vegeta widened his eyes and Bulma raised her face to look at him. Her chest ached.

Vegeta pulled out a lab stool and sat. He'd had enough of people psychoanalyzing him. They were always wrong.

"Like so many other members of your species, Bulma, you're willfully misunderstanding."

_Insufferable race._

He thought with a sneer. Was he really going to do this? He hated explaining himself.

"You're right," he said finally. Bulma's face went blank, concealing her emotions. "I _did_ design that machine with your father. I did try to leave. I'm not going to lie to you. If there was any chance I could regain the life I thought I should have had, I was going to take it. I wanted to escape."

Bulma made an angry noise under her breath and started walking to the door, disgusted with his confession. She'd heard enough. She didn't want to be around him when she finally broke down. He would only chastise her. He hated emotional displays.

Vegeta stood up, stalking toward her as she tried to leave.

"But in dwelling on those things, you're ignoring some non-negotiable facts," he said before she could make her own escape. "First, I will _not _be separated from my son. He is the Heir and the only remaining link to the Royal House. He will not be raised below his station the way I was."

He drew closer and Bulma took in a breath through her nose. Her sadness was dissipating and being replaced with another emotion. She was angrier than she could ever remember. She was not going back to Earth without her son.

"And secondly," he said and reached out to run his fingers through Bulma's hair, "I refuse to remain in a dimension where you don't exist." He pressed in on her, trapping her with his body. Bulma was backed against the door, her escape route blocked.

"So you see, we're at an impasse."

Bulma stared at him, not sure how to interpret the situation. Was he forcing her to stay? But if he planned on keeping her here then why spend so much time down in engineering?

"I don't understand," she said and pushed at his chest feebly. His base ki was ten times stronger than it used to be. If she couldn't fight him off then, she sure as hell couldn't now.

_'Most intelligent female on this side of the galaxy' my ass._

Thought Vegeta.

Placing one hand against the wall on either side of Bulma's head, Vegeta closed the distance between them until his lips were against her ear. He would make her understand.

Bulma stiffened. Even through her anger and the other emotions that seeped through their bond, he could sense the faint smell of her lust. She was pissed, but she still wanted him.

Vegeta turned the lock on the door and pressed himself more firmly against her. No one was in the lab and he'd already disabled the security cameras. They were completely alone.

He inhaled deeply, tangling his hands in her hair and cupping the back of her head. Would he ever tire of the feel of her?

"All those firing neurons in that brain you pride yourself in," Vegeta scoffed, "and you still haven't figured out the most important part." He grasped her chin and turned her head so she had to look at him directly. His chocolate eyes glowed gold. "You and the boy are not the only ones returning to that miserable mudball."

Bulma's eyebrows furrowed.

"I'm going back to Earth with you."

"What?" she asked in barely a whisper. Bulma scowled and Vegeta continued to stare at her as the anger left her eyes.

The Saiya-jin no Ou pulled her away from the wall abruptly and wrapped his arms around her, cradling her head. It was a surprisingly tender move. Uncomfortable with his sudden display of affection, Bulma pushed him away skeptically and looked at him as if she'd never seen him before. It had to be a joke. A cruel joke. What did he mean he wasn't staying? He was going to leave Vegeta-sei?

"But Vegeta, this is everything you've ever—"

"We don't belong here," he interrupted and shook her slightly, trying to convince her of his sincerity. He didn't want to hear the reasons he should stay. He'd already weighed the pros and cons.

_This is not our home._

He said into her mind with disdain and a strange simplicity as he let his hands fall from her arms. Bulma stood there, unmoving, measuring his words. When Vegeta's eyes didn't falter, she reached out, grabbing the tight material of his body suit. The fabric was soft against her fingers. It was one of the new models she'd designed personally.

She couldn't believe it. They were really going home.

"I love you," she said with challenge and defiance in her voice.

"I know," he responded, a derisive smile on his face. He was never going to say it back to her.

With the new strength she'd gained after her extended stay in the regen tank, Bulma pulled her mate closer, the instruments in her lab coat rattling together loudly. The piece of clothing clanked in protest as it dropped to the floor. It didn't matter. She wouldn't be needing it anymore tonight.


	51. chapter fifty

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Chapter Fifty**

Bulma waited until after hours to sneak into Vegeta's lab. No one would be there and she could finally get a good look at the machine he was designing. It was ingenious, really. Nothing like the vessel the boy from the future had used when he visited them and warned about the androids. That was more like something she'd design. She'd created too many hover cars, she thought. It was starting to affect the way she looked at new projects.

Bulma stared at the prototype through the case surrounding it. The device was hand-held, more portable than what she expected. Vegeta must have spent a long time working on it. The technology was complex, but didn't look like something Capsule Corp would typically endorse on its own. The Saiya-jin no Ou must have been the real brain power behind the whole thing, not her father. She was impressed, and she was rarely, if ever, impressed by anyone.

_Not just another pretty face, afterall._ _Or at least not just another muscle-bound Saiya-jin warrior with the technological know-how of a brick._

She thought. And to think, he'd spent months convincing her he knew nothing about Saiya-jin armor. What a joke.

* * *

Vegeta checked and rechecked the device. It was almost an exact copy of the original one he'd designed nearly a year ago. Thankfully, it was taking him less time to figure the damn thing out. Not that distorting space time was easy, many had failed before him. Dr. Briefs even thought it was completely theoretical before Vegeta enlightened him. How had the Chickyuu-jins ever doubted his superior intelligence?

Everything was set for their departure the next night. After a month of establishing a new hierarchy on Vegeta-sei, things were finally starting to look normal again. Now that the Cold Empire was no longer a threat, the Saiya-jins could go back to normal commerce. Almost all of their Associate Worlds had agreed to continue with peace talks. No Saiya-jin would be forced to purge a planet ever again. It gave him a strange sense of peace. At least, in this dimension, things were being set right.

They couldn't be completely certain, but Bulma reassured him that once they rejoined their dimension, the rightful Vegeta would regain consciousness here. Each incarnation could go back to his own world and fill the space to which he was physically entitled. The one thing of which they were truly certain was that the original Vegeta would make sure his father's failures were not his own.

Vegeta looked around the room, taking in everything he was giving up. Wasn't he supposed to feel more attached to this place? It'd been nothing more than a childhood memory for so long that it felt like something more from a dream than reality. Was that how he would feel after he left? Like it was all a dream? Everything already felt surreal. And had he _really_ just used the word 'surreal'?

He muttered curses under his breath and directed his attention back to the remote device that would take them home. He'd rechecked it numerous times. If it wasn't functional now, it never would be.

* * *

The Royal Guard stood watch as their King and his family entered engineering. Everyone was holding their breath. Since Bulma arrived, nearly a year had passed and the whole planet was in the middle of a monumental political shift. Even the Saiya-jins, a race seldom stunned by _anything_, thought it was amazing that during such a short period of time, so much had changed. A new King had been appointed, an invincible empire had been overthrown, and the Legendary had finally Ascended. Nothing would ever be the same.

Zarbon stood off to the side. He'd already said his goodbyes. Even though he knew the man walking toward him was not the same Vegeta he'd practically raised, he felt remarkably attached. Not only had this Vegeta defeated Freeza, he'd restored Vegeta-sei to what it always should have been—a free empire.

Bulma smiled at the green warrior as she walked by. She would forever be grateful that he'd saved her life as well as her son's. He would make an excellent Commander.

_Bulma._

Came a voice from somewhere amidst the crowd. She looked up, recognizing the rough accent immediately.

Radditz's face was barely visible as he leaned against the wall at the far side of the room, partially hidden by one of the ships' shadow. He nodded his head at her in acknowledgment. With so many warriors gathered to see off their King, no one noticed the one additional Elite-level ki. Radditz was taking a potentially fatal risk in being there. The other Saiya-jins still considered him their number one persona non grata. She kept walking, not wanting Vegeta to notice where her attention had suddenly diverted. If Radditz were seen, he would be executed on the spot.

Though she could never completely trust him again, she had to admit she was thankful for everything he'd done. Without him, Freeza would have succeeded and Vegeta-sei would have eventually been destroyed. He was as much their savior as Vegeta.

The Saiya-jin King paused and helped Bulma up to the circular platform in the middle of the room. It was specially designed to broaden the interdimensional field so they could all transport at once. Afte Bulma was safely situated within the field range, Veget pressed a button on the contraption he held in his hand. They were instantly surrounded by a green light. Trunks shut his eyes and pressed his face against his mother's chest, unprepared for the sudden change.

_Thank you._

Bulma directed her thoughts towards the hidden warrior. She'd gotten much better at controlling her mental abilities, especially after spending so much time in the regen tank.

_She would be proud._

Radditz smiled sadly. He was lost now that he could never remain on Vegeta-sei. Bulma pitied him. Despite it all, he was a good man.

The lights on the platform began to blink as they were illuminated one by one in a series.

"It's time," said Vegeta as he took her hand. Bulma looked away from Radditz and up at her mate. His eyes were glowing intensely, devoid of any hesitation. She took a deep breath and squeezed his hand reassuringly. She was ready.

The guards watched, transfixed, as their leaders were engulfed in a blue flame. Vegeta pressed another button. There was a great whooshing noise as if they were suddenly immersed in a large body of moving water. She held onto Vegeta's hand more tightly.

The pair looked out into the room as the figures surrounding them slowly faded. The last thing they saw was the Royal Guard, the warriors simultaneously raising fisted hands and pressing them against the opposite shoulder.

* * *

The blue light faded away as Vegeta and Bulma's eyes adjusted to the dimness of their surroundings. From a distance, the faint twinkling of stars could barely be seen as the sky was slowly painted from orange to deep blue. The lights of the nearby city had always partially obscured the view of the night sky.

Bulma blinked and held Trunks closer to her. His tiny hands were buried in her hair. She couldn't imagine how terrifying their trip must have been for such a small baby.

Vegeta released her hand and stepped forward a few feet, taking in his surroundings. They were on the front lawn of the Briefs' large property, the dome of the house dark where it sat a hundred yards or so away. Everything was quiet. No one had noticed their return.

They looked at each other as if unable to believe they were finally back. Vegeta turned first and started walking towards the house, passing the GR and the Capsule Corp Headquarters building. Bulma had to hurry to catch up. He opened the door to the house (it was unlocked, as usual), and flung it impatiently against the wall. Vegeta narrowed his eyes as the security bots started beeping, scanning them with identification lasers. Bulma hoped he wouldn't fry them again, as was his habit. She was too tired to start yelling. When the bots returned to their charging location down the hall without being melted, Bulma released the breath she'd been holding. They stepped inside.

_Vegeta better be happy._

She thought. She'd be highly surprised if he hadn't woken the entire household with his careless slamming about.

The lights were off and Bulma could hear the hum of the economy-sized refrigerator as she entered the large kitchen. It was nearly the size of a small house. They hadn't even bought the damn thing until Vegeta moved in. She smiled and shook her head.

_Saiya-jins._

A clock on a nearby wall ticked steadily. If she'd calculated the time difference between the two dimensions correctly, only about a day had passed on Earth. Everything was just as they'd left it.

Bulma adjusted Trunks so he was resting more firmly on her hip. He was getting heavier by the day, already built like his father. The child looked around, his eyes bright. He'd never seen this place before. What an adventure he was having. Bulma reached out and took Vegeta's hand.

"Bulma Briefs!" came a sharp voice from the other side of the room. The two of them jumped as the light switch was angrily flipped on. "_Where_ have you been? Yamcha won't stop calling and now you're coming home at all hours—" her mother's voice cut off abruptly as she took in the scene before her. She stared, open mouthed, at the three of them.

"I—how—what?" she asked in a flurry, obviously confused about finding Bulma in the kitchen with Vegeta. Her face paled as her eyes lingered on Trunks. She glanced at the couple's intertwined fingers and then back up at their faces.

"Calm down, dear," said Bulma's father as he appeared from down the hall, his cat perched happily on his shoulder, "you're going to give yourself a fit." He patted his wife on the back. "I see you've finally returned," he said to Bulma and Vegeta as he sat at the table. He casually removed a box of cigarettes from some unknown pocket and lit up.

"Dad...?" Bulma's voice trailed off. What did he mean?

She gave her mother a hasty look. She really hoped they weren't expecting to get an explanation from her tonight. She was too tired after their interdimensional ordeal. As if seconding the thought, Trunks yawned and then suddenly sneezed, giving the smoke that floated in the air a curious look.

"You will _not _smoke that noxious plant around our child," said Vegeta, breaking the silence and snatching the narrow cylinder from between Dr. Briefs's lips. He threw it into the sink with a disgusted grunt.

Bulma's father raised his eyebrows and her mother swooned.

"Well, I guess that answers more than a few questions."

Dr. Briefs considered the young couple for a few moments and motioned for his wife to sit down. He hadn't seen her this frazzled since she started having hot flashes. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

"I can't believe he was tracking us the whole time," said Bulma as she laid in Vegeta's bed. The black sheets felt comforting against her bare skin. They weren't as expensive as the ones she had on Vegeta-sei, but they felt like home. She glanced at the bedside clock. 4:31am. Kami, was it really that late?

Vegeta grunted. He wasn't surprised at all. The old man always seemed to have a trick up his sleeve.

Somehow he'd known Vegeta would try to use the device before it was ready. Contingency plans were something he and his daughter had in common. Allowing Vegeta to think that his model was the only prototype was just one of such precautions. With a second machine, the old man could easily track the quantum distortion Vegeta's remote device created upon activation, alerting him of their departure. As long as Dr. Briefs could track them, they were never truly lost.

Bulma ran her fingers mindlessly through her hair as she stared up at the white ceiling. When standing, the blue tresses stretched the length of her entire back. She hadn't had hair this long since she was sixteen. And there was a reason for that. She remembered how it stuck to her skin after being removed from the regen tank.

Yamcha was going to throw a fit when he saw her.

Abruptly, she started laughing.

"What?" asked Vegeta with annoyance.

Bulma just shook her head. She could sense a fit of mania coming on as the ridiculousness of everything that had happened hit her. Her life had gone through hell and back. And now what? She was worried about her hair. She pictured her mother standing in the kitchen, fuming, telling Bulma that she had to call Yamcha as if the fate of the universe depended on the fleeting emotions of her daughter's cheating ex-boyfriend. Ha. It was trivial, juvenile, alien. She would always love Yamcha, but she hadn't thought about him in months. He was no longer part of the world she'd built. He was no longer part of _her._

She stopped laughing, wiped at her eyes, and backtracked.

Who the hell was she anymore? Did anything that happened on Vegeta-sei even matter now that they returned here?

It killed her knowing that all the struggles of the past year were reduced to little more than a 24-hour cosmic burp in this dimension. Someone with a higher authority must have really been enjoying himself.

Vegeta watched his mate as she struggled to contain herself. She was in hysterics again. He hated to admit it, but he was growing accustomed to these unexpected bouts of insanity. He'd stopped trying to understand years ago. Chickyuu-jin were just mad, the whole lot of them. He looked away, hoping the quantum radiation they were exposed to upon returning to Earth hadn't permanently damaged her brain. The woman was clearly emotionally unstable.

The makeshift baby monitor sitting on Vegeta's night stand clicked on as Trunks made happy gurgling noises in his sleep. His parents both turned and looked at the small speaker in unison. They'd put him in Bulma's old room so he could get some rest. Even though they were back on Earth, both of them were still cautious. A double abduction was hard to forget.

Bulma laid back down after a minute, convinced that their son was in no immediate danger. The course of adrenaline had sobered her considerably.

She glanced at the Saiya-jin lying beside her.

"Vegeta?"

"Yes?" he responded testily. Would she ever fall asleep?

"You never told me about what happened that night." He growled. It was something he hoped she'd never bring up.

"Which night?" he asked, thinking that feigning ignorance would redirect their conversation. He turned away from her, laying on his side. She always got this reaction when Vegeta was pissed and didn't want to talk anymore. Bulma called it the 'butt treatment'.

"The night you fought Freeza."

How could he have ever found her persistence an attractive trait?

"He's dead, onna, let his memory die with him," he said with more venom than he'd intended.

Bulma snapped her teeth shut and clenched her jaw. Great. First night back and he was already creating a shit storm.

"I know, I know. I'm not asking for a play-by-play of the battle or anything, Vegeta. Jesus." He was such a bastard sometimes. She faced the wall gruffly and they fell into a hostile silence.

"At first, I wasn't sure how to react to the news you'd been captured," started Vegeta in an even tone, surprising Bulma. "There was no way I could beat Freeza with brute strength. I'd tried it before and failed. I knew my own limits. Without Ascending, there was only one option."

He rolled onto his back, folding his hands over his head.

"You knew what I was going to do when I left you on his ship, I know you did. I could see it in your eyes. Your dreams were all too adumbrative," he said and scoffed bitterly.

"But I didn't care. I didn't care if by dying I was damning myself to a thousand hells. My life meant nothing to me if Freeza survived. Somehow he knew about how we'd gotten to Vegeta-sei. I'd always intended to send you back, with or without me. He was going to follow you and destroy Earth. Our link was torn," he closed his eyes, reliving the moment as it replayed in his head. "And something in me snapped."

She inhaled and exhaled evenly, listening.

"Bulma," he said as he placed his hand on her upper arm and shook her lightly. Had she fallen asleep?

Bulma took a deep breath, the electric current of their bond sliding through her body deliciously. She fought back the urge to respond. It was a losing battle.

"So you don't regret it? None of it at all?" she asked incredulously, breaking the poignant silence. Vegeta grunted. So she hadn't been sleeping. She'd just been pretending to ignore him. She was so god damned obstinate.

The Saiya-jin no Ou growled and rolled on top of her, pinning her to the bed with his weight. The defenseless Earthling stared up at him passively. She was completely unmoved by his monologue.

Vegeta slammed his hand against the mattress in frustration, permanently deforming some of its springs. Bulma wasn't expecting the sudden jolt. She yelped and blinked several times out of reflex.

"Woman! I am _never_ saying this again, so listen carefully."

Bulma attempted to refocus her vision. She'd never seen the Saiya-jin so angry.

"I could have stayed. I could have ruled as the Legendary. For fuck's sake, no one would have even opposed me—they wouldn't have been able to." He shook her once, leaving red marks on her upper arms, and sat up, straddling the lower half of her body.

"You once asked me how it felt to Ascend. Do you still want to know?"

A golden light began to radiate from Vegeta's body as the ki energy escaped through his skin. He let all of his barriers drop_, _piercing Bulma's mental shields remorselessly. It was something he normally would have never done, but tonight he delighted in the feeling of tearing through every last wall, forcing her to see reality—forcing her to see _him_. He wanted her to experience it the way he did.

The energy spilled out of him and into the room as the vessel of his body overflowed with the incredible power he could access at will. The beast rose, bursting to the surface with little hindrance.

Bulma screamed and the room burned with a magnesium intensity.

"Stop, Vegeta, stop!" she begged, as the light faded. When she was brave enough to open her eyes, she peered at him through slitted lids. Her eyes widened.

Vegeta was only inches from her face, his blue eyes clear and unwavering.

"I could destroy you so easily. I could burn your mind away until there was nothing left but a husk of ash." He leaned back and lifted his hand, turning it from side to side as it was consumed in a golden flame. "Or I could use this and destroy everything you held dear. So you tell me, Bulma, what does it feel like?" he asked her sadistically. "Does it feel like you thought it would? Does it feel like everything you thought I ever wanted? Does absolute power hold the same fascination now that you've seen it first hand?"

The flame died as Vegeta reabsorbed the energy. The light illuminating his skin slowly started to fade, and finally, his hair and eyes returned to their usual, more muted colors. He leaned in close, speaking into Bulma's face with an eerie calmness.

"I floated in space for days, wishing I had never Ascended—wishing I were dead. And do you know why? Do you have any idea?" He shook her again.

Bulma's eyes started to water.

"Because much as I denied it, hated myself for it, wished I'd die for allowing it, something in me had changed." He screwed his eyes shut. "Everything that happened on Vegeta-sei was more than I could have ever wanted. I couldn't have come up with a better wish had I summoned the Dragon myself." He snorted and reopened his eyes.

"But true self-knowledge doesn't give a fuck about what you think you want. I watched your body float lifelessly in the regen tank, and knew that everything I'd accomplished was bullshit. Even though I'd become the Legendary and killed that evil bastard, even though Vegeta-sei would never be destroyed again, the only thing that mattered was that _you_ were gone, the only person I ever..." he caught himself, his face going hard. He looked away.

"Regardless of how much I resented it at first, if I could change anything about the events of the last year—if I could go back to that pivotal night you found me out on the balcony during the _Khon'daia na—_I would still leave my door unlocked.

"I would sacrifice it all for you, Bulma. I would trade my heritage, my power, my _life_. Not because we were forced together, not because this is inescapable, but because I _choose_ to."

He paused to let the words sink in, crossed his arms, and looked at her condescendingly.

"And if you _ever _tell _any_ of this to that idiot Kakkarot—"

"Oh, shut up, Vegeta," interrupted Bulma in irritation as she reached for him.

The Earth woman cried as she kissed her mate. She cried as she pulled the few remaining garments from his bronze skin. And she cried as the rhythmic movement of their bodies wove the last strands of their bond into something only possible between two people willingly and hopelessly entangled.

The third pillar was finally complete.


	52. epilogue

Insert standard disclaimer here.

**The Price You Pay: Epilogue**

Almost another year had passed and the android threat loomed over them with a sort of finality. The Z Senshi threw themselves into training with a vigor they'd lacked during other battles. Kami remained hopeful as he turned his attention to the Capsule Corp headquarters. Goku wasn't the only ace they had to play any longer.

From his post, the green alien could barely make out the roar of the GR equipment. Now that Vegeta had Ascended, he pushed himself to be readier for the androids than any of the other Earth warriors. He wasn't allowing himself the mistake of complacency. This time around, he had more to defend than his pride.

Kami leaned heavily on his wooden staff as he watched everything unfold from the safety of his marble palace. He smiled to himself, happy he was away from the other inhabitants of Heaven. They could never know the things he'd done. He'd broken more than a few rules with his tampering.

Though he could never directly influence the behaviors of the people he protected, Kami had long ago mastered the art of subtle manipulation. He particularly favored using premonitions and dreams. And, he admitted modestly, he was _very_ good at it.

Kami let his thoughts wander. Everything had worked out, thanks to a few minor technicalities. One of the little-known perks of being a guardian was being in control of every incarnation of his planet and its citizens. It had been only too easy to continue manipulating Bulma's dreams from the safety of this dimension. Despite her tough facade, the woman would never have made it through her ordeal on Vegeta-sei without Kami's preparatory intervention.

The Namekian squinted as he turned his attention back to Earth. Bulma was sauntering onto the lawn between her home and Vegeta's training center. She was wearing a sun hat and a tube dress, typical attire during the summer months, and slowly pulling Trunks in tow. The boy was developing as quickly as normal Saiya-jin children, already stumbling across the lawn as he learned to control his balance on unsteady legs. Bulma smiled at him and mumbled encouragements with enthusiasm.

Sensing his family's presence, Vegeta eased himself to the cracked floor of the GR and walked to the control panel, powering down the machine. He was training in over 500 gs now that the walls had been reinforced with titanium. Sure, he could survive the thing crumbling down on him, but it would take too long to rebuild the machine if it were destroyed. Not to mention what Bulma's reaction would be. The small building was worth a fortune.

Bulma waved at the Saiya-jin through the thick plexiglas of the GR's circular windows.

Earth's guardian continued to watch as Vegeta exited the GR and approached his family, scowl firmly in place. He would never admit it, but Kami knew Vegeta took pleasure in the short interruptions.

The Saiya-jin King picked up Trunks and effortlessly tossed him ten feet into the air. Trunks laughed and Bulma screeched at her mate to be more careful with the child. Their son may have been sturdier than the tiny female, but Trunks's mother wasn't taking any chances. Vegeta grinned mischievously and carefully placed the lavender-haired toddler on the ground. He would concede this small thing to her—he'd already started training the child in secret anyway.

Vegeta looked his mate up and down, a new sort of grin washing across his face. Bulma blushed scarlet and mumbled something along the lines of, "Not in front of Trunks!" then adjusted the length of her skirt. The Saiya-jin warrior only laughed and smacked her, not so delicately, on the ass. Bulma glared at him and looked around, hoping no one had seen them.

The couple made their way back to the Briefs residence, Trunks in tow. He was walking faster this time, trying to be strong like his daddy.

When they finally made it inside, Vegeta took a glance out at the yard, sensing that someone was watching. When no one was found, he looked up at the sky with narrowed eyes. Kami turned away. He knew that Vegeta's acute Saiya-jin senses would be hard-pressed to detect his temporary intrusion, but he wanted to avoid the scrutiny nonetheless. Vegeta was exceptionally protective of his family.

Kami smiled again.

It was worth it. It was all completely worth it.

_**Author's Note:**_

_I would like to take a moment to thank each and everyone of you for sticking with this story. You guys are awesome! Your continuing reviews and feedback have always inspired me to not only update, but be a better writer. Without all of your support, I never would have finished this. From the bottom of my Vegeta-loving heart, thank you! _

_As an aside, I do plan on continuing with revisions and editing where necessary. The story line will remain the same, but I hate finding typos and things that are easily corrected. Apologies for all of the update notices but I want this fanfiction to be as perfect as possible. I have been working on it for nearly eight years, afterall. (Let's hope the next one doesn't take quite as long.)_

_Until my next fic, adieu!_


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